Computing Ethics 9781536194012, 1536194018

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ETHICAL ISSUES IN THE 21ST CENTURY

COMPUTING ETHICS

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ETHICAL ISSUES IN THE 21ST CENTURY

COMPUTING ETHICS

ABDELRAHMAN KARRAR AND

KAMAL DAHBUR

Copyright © 2021 by Nova Science Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means: electronic, electrostatic, magnetic, tape, mechanical photocopying, recording or otherwise without the written permission of the Publisher. We have partnered with Copyright Clearance Center to make it easy for you to obtain permissions to reuse content from this publication. Simply navigate to this publication’s page on Nova’s website and locate the “Get Permission” button below the title description. This button is linked directly to the title’s permission page on copyright.com. Alternatively, you can visit copyright.com and search by title, ISBN, or ISSN. For further questions about using the service on copyright.com, please contact: Copyright Clearance Center Phone: +1-(978) 750-8400 Fax: +1-(978) 750-4470 E-mail: [email protected].

NOTICE TO THE READER The Publisher has taken reasonable care in the preparation of this book, but makes no expressed or implied warranty of any kind and assumes no responsibility for any errors or omissions. No liability is assumed for incidental or consequential damages in connection with or arising out of information contained in this book. The Publisher shall not be liable for any special, consequential, or exemplary damages resulting, in whole or in part, from the readers’ use of, or reliance upon, this material. Any parts of this book based on government reports are so indicated and copyright is claimed for those parts to the extent applicable to compilations of such works. Independent verification should be sought for any data, advice or recommendations contained in this book. In addition, no responsibility is assumed by the publisher for any injury and/or damage to persons or property arising from any methods, products, instructions, ideas or otherwise contained in this publication. This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information with regard to the subject matter covered herein. It is sold with the clear understanding that the Publisher is not engaged in rendering legal or any other professional services. If legal or any other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent person should be sought. FROM A DECLARATION OF PARTICIPANTS JOINTLY ADOPTED BY A COMMITTEE OF THE AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION AND A COMMITTEE OF PUBLISHERS. Additional color graphics may be available in the e-book version of this book.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data ISBN: H%RRN

Published by Nova Science Publishers, Inc. † New York

CONTENTS Acknowledgement

vii

Preface

ix

Chapter 1

Introduction to Computing Ethics

1

Chapter 2

Ethics for the Computing Professions

19

Chapter 3

Privacy and Anonymity

43

Chapter 4

Intellectual Property

63

Chapter 5

Globalization

81

Chapter 6

Computer and Information Crimes

109

References

133

About the Authors

143

Index

145

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First and foremost, we thank our Lord for giving us the knowledge and strength to see this project to completion. This project is dedicated to our wives and children for their love, understanding, patience and support. We truly owe you our sincere love and gratitude. We could not have done it without you. We owe many words of thanks and appreciation and are very grateful to Ahmed Dahbur for his great work reviewing and editing this book.

PREFACE Praise and thanks to God, who started his holy book with the Arabic word “iqra” that means “read”. Glory is to Allah, who taught mankind the things that they did not know including using the “pen”. Merit and grace be to our Lord for honoring the Arabs by revealing the Quran in Arabic. Prayers and peace be upon the Messenger of God who was sent to us as a teacher, counselor and guide. The motivation for this work is to have a book in English that combines the two important notions: (1) limiting the discussion of ethical concepts and topics to those that are related to the computing world, (2) addressing the ethical issues from the perspective of the Arabic and Islamic cultures. This book will solely concentrate on the ethical issues related to the field of technology and computing. The book will discuss topics and statistics with regards to the Middle East and Arabian world in a directed effort to be a resource of the region. This is not meant to be a comprehensive book that covers all the issues of ethics, nor is it meant to address all the philosophical theories in ethics. The book however does cover the most important issues in ethics and draws comparison between the perspectives of the theories and Islam in a variety of ethical scenarios. The book also extends the discussion to some of the computing problems associated with ethical issues and offers some guidelines to assist in avoiding or resolving such problems.

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We wish all the readers of this book an enjoyable and beneficial experience. We look forward to your constructive feedback to help us improve the book. Abdelrahman & Kamal

Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTING ETHICS 1.1. INTRODUCTION TO ETHICS Ethics is defined as a form of human awareness and is considered the basis for controlling and regulating human behavior in all areas of social life without exception. Religion sets the basis for regulating a person’s life and one’s relationships with other people. From this set of general relationships, ethics and values are formed. They are inspired, in general, from the human history and social heritage. Since ancient times, every nation has endeavored to have values and principles that it proudly cherishes. Once the nation adopts such values and principles, it works on ensuring their continuity by revising them to ensure their relevance to new developments. Such values and principles are also indoctrinated and taught so as not to be crossed or violated (i.e., enforced by law or customs). Ethics is the study of human behavior in light of the ethical rules that set standards for a behavior. A person sets such standards for himself and considers them as constraints (i.e., obligatory controls) within which his actions are carried out. The word “ethic” is derived from the Greek word “ethos” which refers to creating and forming ethics, as a set of beliefs and directed ideals that permeates the individual or group of people in a society (Figure 1-1).

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(Source: Website for The Royal Irish Academy) Figure 1-1. Ethics and society in the ancient world.

1.1.1. The Concept of Professional Ethics The concept of professional ethics is a set of ethical and professional standards required to be followed by members of a professional association. It is defined as specification of the ideal standards for a profession that is adopted by a professional group or organization that is intended to direct its members to assume their professional responsibilities. A set of ethics and public decorum is usually defined by the laws and regulations of every profession.

1.1.2. Legal and Ethical Responsibility The observance of professional ethics preserves the integrity and honor of the profession. Legal responsibility differs from ethical responsibility in terms of dimensions. The legal responsibility is determined by legislation before a person or before a law. Ethical responsibility, on the other hand, is a broader and more comprehensive circle than the circle of law because it pertains to the relationship of a man with his Creator, himself, and/or others.

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It is a self-imposed responsibility before God and conscience. As for the circle of law, it is restricted to the behavior of the human toward others, it changes according to the law applied in the society, and is implemented by an external authority of judges, law officers, prosecutors, and prisons. It is important to note that the self-imposed strength of ethicality is not a substitute for law; instead, both the ethical and the legal responsibility are complementary to each other and cannot be separated in any profession.

1.1.3. Code of Ethics The ethical code (also known as code of ethics) for any profession comprises the guiding rules for practicing a profession to promote its ideal identity and support its mission. Despite its importance in defining practices and priorities within a certain profession, the ethical code cannot be enforced by coercion but by commitment. Furthermore, the only way to judge a certain profession is the behavior of its members towards the profession and their commitment to upholding and maintaining the values of trust, respect, efficiency, and dignity. The ethical code for any profession is intended to clarify the professional obligations before the colleagues of the same profession, the profession itself, its affiliated organizations, its beneficiaries, the nation, and society (Figure 1-2). The main properties of the ethical code for any profession include being: • • • • •

Brief and concise Clear and easy to understand Reasonable and acceptable in practice Comprehensive Positive

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1.2. COMPUTING ETHICS 1.2.1. Definition of Computing Ethics The beginnings of computer ethics started in the 1940’s, but the term “computer ethics” did not appear as an independent branch in computer science until the 1970’s. Several attempts were made to establish a clear definition of computer ethics and identify the topics encompassed within. We will review the main attempts made in this regard.

(Source: Website for Association for Computing Machinery) Figure 1-2. ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct.

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The first attempt to develop a specific definition of the term computer ethics began with Walter Maner in the mid-1970s. He defined computer ethics as the branch that examines “ethical problems aggravated, transformed, or created by computer technology.” According to Maner, traditional ethical problems have become more complicated by the presence of computers. A number of new ethical problems arise due to the emergence of information technology. Maner focused his scientific work on applying the traditional ethical theories to address the ethical problems associated with information technology. Maner also showed special interest in the utility theory of philosopher John Stuart Mill and the duty theory of philosopher Immanuel Kant. Deborah Johnson provided a second definition. Johnson felt computers “pose new versions of standard moral problems and moral dilemmas, exacerbating the old problems, and forcing us to apply ordinary moral norms in uncharted realms.” As with Maner, Johnson suggested reliance on both the utility and duty theories as a basis to address these ethical questions. However, unlike Maner, she did not believe that computers created new problems that did not exist previously, but rather changed the nature of the traditional moral problems. James Moor expanded the definition of computer ethics from those of Maner and Johnson. He defined computer ethics as the “the analysis of the nature and social impact of computer technology and the corresponding formulation and justification of policies for the ethical use of such technology.” Moor stated “Computers provide us with new capabilities and these in turn give us new choices for action.” He continued in stating, “Often, either no policies for conduct in these situations exist or existing policies seem inadequate, and a main task for computer ethics is to determine for us how to behave in such cases.” Due to the flexibility of the definition that he provided, Moor combined the traditional ethical theories with other methodological treatments in an attempt to resolve the ethical challenges associated with the use of computers. In 1989, Terrell Bynum introduced a fourth definition of computer ethics, which is similar to Moor’s broad definition. This definition was originally attributed to Norbert Wiener, who first put it in his book.

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According to this definition, “computer ethics identifies and analyzes the impacts of information technology on such social and human values as health, wealth, work, opportunity, freedom, democracy, knowledge, privacy, security, self-fulfillment, etc.” The flexibility of this definition allows other branches such as applied ethics, sociology, and law to contribute to addressing ethical problems arising from the use of computers in society. In the 1990s, Donald Gotterbarn introduced a new perspective for computer ethics in which the field “should be viewed as a branch of professional ethics, which is concerned with setting standards and regulations for the practice of a particular discipline.” Through this new view, Gotterbarn was interested in drafting a code of conduct for software engineering. The 1990s were marked by the abundance of contributions by scholars interested in the field of computer ethics. In addition to Gotterbarn’s, there were many valuable contributions in this field from other well-known scholars, such as Simon Rogerson, Dianne Martin, and Keith Miller.

1.2.2. History of Computing Ethics It can be reasonably stated that the true beginnings of the branch of “computing ethics” was with Professor Norbert Wiener in the early 1940s, when he asked about the possibility of technology turning into a “devil” that may cause destruction of mankind. Professor Weiner discussed his point of view in several scientific articles. Weiner’s interest continued into the 1950’s, during which he published his well-known book in which he explained his philosophical vision about computing ethics. In his book, Weiner raised several important issues, such as the goal that a person seeks in his life, as well as the principles of justice that must prevail in society and a group of questions related to computing ethics. Weiner also raised a set of applied examples of ethical problems that could be introduced with computer use.

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The main idea that Professor Weiner focused on in his book was that the technological revolution will have very significant impacts on human society in the future. Therefore, he believed that the duty of governments, scholars and philosophers to think and invent a new policy that can address these potential changes; with an ethical perspective that is proportionate to the degree of the changes In the 1960s, Dr. Donn Parker began focusing on the unethical and unlawful computer use committed by computer professionals, and how to reduce said behaviors. Dr. Parker’s comments on these practices alleged “it seemed that when people entered the computer center they left their ethics at the door.” As a result of Dr. Parker’s interest in computer ethics, he devoted a lot of his effort to publishing numerous books and scientific articles dealing with computer crimes. Literature on “computing ethics” did not appear to the public until the mid-seventies. Dr. Walter Maner was the first to introduce the literature as well as the first to teach a university course called “computer ethics.” He also held many workshops dealing with the topic in scientific conferences that were held in the United States. One of his contributions to the field was to publish a scientific description of the courses on computing ethics. As a result, the teaching of “computing ethics” spread as a basic course in many American universities. In the 1980s, computer-related ethical and social problems became among the general issues of concern to the society in the United States and Europe. In the middle of that decade, Professor James Moor, at Dartmouth University, published an important article entitled “What is computer ethics?” in which he identified topics that should be addressed in this field. As a result of the increased interest in this field, scientific magazines devoted to the topic of computer ethics appeared. In addition, during this period, the first international scientific conference devoted to computer ethics was held. Around the same time, Deborah Johnson published the first book on the topic. The 1990s witnessed a major breakthrough in scientific production in the field of computer ethics. A cornucopia of books, articles, and scientific journals appeared. Furthermore, many conferences and workshops were

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held with focus on the topic. Universities also expanded to offer various courses in computer ethics. The interest in computer ethics was not confined to the United States, but quickly expanded to other regions of the world, especially Europe and Australia. Perhaps the establishment of a specialized center for computer ethics studies, by a Dr. Simon Rogers, a university professor in Britain, has provided a huge boost to the development of this scientific field.

1.2.3. Ethical Theories and Philosophy When we talk about computer ethics, we are referring to the branch that deals with the social and moral problems associated with the use of the computer in a philosophical manner. Thus, it is a branch that combines two fields of human knowledge: the philosophy of ethics and the information systems. Therefore, it is useful to briefly discuss the “philosophy of ethics” as the basis for dealing with issue before entering into applicable details. The philosophy of ethics is one of the main branches of philosophy, and it examines the principles of right and wrong when it comes to dealing with others. Since the history of the philosophy of ethics extends to before the Greek civilization, it is a science that has historical roots originating more than 2,500 years ago. In ethics there are two main intellectual directions: the first is called “relativism”, while the other is called the “objective” direction. The main idea of the relativism direction is that there are no fixed standards and laws for moral values, but rather values are man-made. In other words, behaviors that people within a society accept become the moral values of said society. Therefore, moral values are not general values for all societies. Rather, each society has its own values, which cannot be imposed on another society. Furthermore, the values of a certain society may change from time to time. Morals values that are considered as such today may not be acceptable in the future. According to this view, there is no absolute moral value. For example, adultery may be acceptable and does not violate any moral value if it is not thought of as being wrong by the society, and therefore its practice

Introduction to Computing Ethics

9

is ethically legitimate. Conversely, adultery may be an unethical act in another society that believes that it violates moral values. The difference is only a matter of one society being accustomed to something and accepting an action, while the other society rejects said behavior and does not want any of its members to practice it. On the other hand, we find that the main idea of the objective direction is such that moral values are fixed values because they stem from the moral nature of man, which is constant and that does not change. Moral values, in the view of the objective direction, are not affected by time or place, as they are valid for all societies without discrimination. Therefore, if a society gives up these moral values, then it is the fault of the society that has been affected by corruption that consequently caused these values to be viewed as not worthy of respect. There are two distinct rationales in support of the objective view of ethicality. The first is the position of scholars who say that the source of these moral values is God Almighty, and that he is the one who has accepted these values for man. Therefore, a person must adhere to these values because they represent a sacred choice by God for humanity, and thus they are surely in his interest. The second rationale defends that the objective ethics are the natural essence of man and his personality, which is closer to the eternal ideals as viewed by the Greek philosopher Plato (Figure 1-3). According to this objective direction, moral values differ completely from customs and traditions. Thus, if it is normal for the customs of a society to differ from another society without this being deprecated; it is on the other hand unacceptable that the moral values of a society differ from the rest of societies because moral values are immortal beliefs related to the nature of man as a human being. Consequently, there should be no difference between individuals and societies in looking at these moral values. Each of the previous two directions represents a different way of looking at cases that require moral judgment. This book will adopt the rationale provided by the objective direction. This is primarily because the relativism direction is believed to be too robust for a long-lasting ethical system since it changes from time to time and from one place to another. A permanent decision-making mechanism for such matters and issues is more ideal from the perspective of the authors.

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Computer users are faced, in many cases, with ethical questions that revolve around the legality of what they do. In order to have a standard that determines how to behave without violating moral values, it is necessary to have a philosophical basis that guides to what is right and what is not. Therefore, it is important to have an ethical system or model that helps users make decisions when faced with ethical dilemmas related to the use of computers, such as: • • •

Am I entitled to copy original software? Am I committing an unethical act when I spread a virus over the internet? Is it ethically permissible to see information about people without intending to harm them?

(Source: laphamsquarterly.org) Figure 1-3. Greek Philosopher Plato.

1.3. ROLE AND USES OF COMPUTERS IN OUR LIVES Computers are used in many professional fields, including but not limited to: business administration and accounting, graphics and engineering

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design, manufacturing industry, medicine, transportation, education, and military applications. The following bullets provide some examples of the use of computing devices in major and important aspects of our lives as well as in fields that are beneficial to our societies: •

•

•

•

Computers in Medicine: Computers are used in several areas in the medical field. They monitor patients in intensive care units and produce cross-sectional view of the body (Figure 1-4). They also help the doctor diagnose diseases, suggest treatment, and prescribe as well as manufacture pharmaceutical medications. Furthermore, computers are used to comprehensively chart the experiences of senior doctors to be used as learning tools for other physicians. Computers in Banking: Computers are used in banks primarily to open customer accounts and follow their banking activities. You can now perform your banking business on your own through automatic teller machines (ATMs). Many banks currently provide online services through the internet. Computers in Business Enterprises: Computers are used for organizing and manage personnel affairs, salaries, inventory, documentation, archiving, and secretarial work. The concept of e-commerce has recently thrived, which enables the user to buy, sell, and conduct commercial transactions through the Internet. Computers in Education: Various educational programs have been developed, which use multimedia to simplify the educational process, and allow teachers to monitor, guide, and test their students remotely. In addition, many institutes and universities have recently moved to using computer technology and the Internet to implement the idea of distance learning (Figure 1-5).

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•

Computers at the Residence: A house is almost never devoid of a computer these days. It is used to teach children, organize the family finances, save phone numbers and family members ‘data, and to connect to the Internet to obtain information as well as buy home goods. Computers are also used for games and entertainment. Computers in Military and Security: Computers are used in manufacturing of military equipment, missile guidance, aircraft, submarines, positioning systems, spying, and encryption of secret messages. They are also used for storing and manipulating records of wanted persons and fingerprints, as well as inspecting travel luggage. Computers are also used in guarding important and sensitive establishments.

(Source: computergap.com) Figure 1-4. Computers in the medical field.

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(Source: blackboard.com) Figure 1-5. Computers in education – distance learning.

•

•

Computers in Engineering, Drawing, and Design: Computers are used in planning and designing new cities, buildings, bridges, etc. They are also used for experimenting with the engineering plans and drawings to reach an appropriate design suitable for implementation (Figure 1-6). Computers in Communications and Internet: Many governmental organizations and commercial companies rely on communication systems and computer technology in their dealings with individuals and customers. Through communications technology, individuals can send emails, talk remotely, share files, and browse the Internet.

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(Source: 3dnatives.com) Figure 1-6. Computers in engineering drawing & design.

•

•

•

Computers in Libraries: Modern libraries today rely on integrated automated systems that cover the operations and functions of libraries including the automated library index, which can be viewed and searched from the library websites. These automated systems also assist with the rest of the library functions, such as providing electronic periodicals, specialized databases, and other relevant applications. Computers in Publicity and Advertisement: Computer programs specialized in designing advertisements can be used to enter the basic data for the advertisement, then formatting and transforming it by changing the type, style, size, and color of the font and backgrounds, adding various textual effects, or incorporating images and graphics. Computers in Manufacturing: Computers are used effectively, by engineers and designers, in the field of design and manufacturing to increase production and reduce cost. This is usually accomplished by using robots, especially for repetitive tasks, operations that require high accuracy, and dangerous jobs, such as welding, painting, as well as hardware and machine manufacturing.

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1.4. NEGATIVE USES OF COMPUTERS AND THE INTERNET Computers, on one side, have proved to be very beneficial to mankind in many areas and across various disciplines. On the other side, these powerful machines, when in the hands of bad people, can be dangerous, harmful, and destructive tools. The following bullets are meant as some examples of the negative uses of computers and the Internet: •

•

Invasion of Privacy: Exposure to intrusion from others is sort of unavoidable, because any individual or organization connected to the network becomes visible by millions of other subscribers to the network. Address probing software that work round the clock need only a few minutes to discover the existence of any new site or any new device has recently attached to the network (Figure 1-7). Electronic Espionage and Terrorism: This is carried out by commercial competitors or by groups, who are driven by various maleficent motives. In the current millennium, the Internet is largely responsible for the increase and spread of the various forms of terrorism.

(Source: marketingcharts.com – Center for International Governance Innovation) Figure 1-7. Chart showing users privacy concerns.

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•

•

•

•

Information Theft: Theft is usually caused by a breach in the local system or the processing of a spurious transaction through the network. Theft can result in obtaining some prohibited vital information, which can be disclosed or sold for money. Theft may also affect other valuable assets such as credit card numbers that can be used to withdraw funds from the credit card holder’s balance. Privacy Violation: This is usually exhibited in the disclosure of sensitive secrets of individuals or companies, whether personal, professional, health, or financial. There are many multi-million-dollar compensation lawsuits in the United States courts against some health care organizations alleging the disclosure of information from the medical files of some of their patients (Figure 1-8). Disclosure of Secrets: Disclosure of secrets is one of the biggest caveats that many organizations, who want to connect to the Internet, are wary about. If a corporation is subject to repeated disclosure of its sensitive information, this will greatly reflect on its profits, its public status, or both. Identity Theft: Identity theft or impersonation occurs when the criminal intends to use the identity of another person to take advantage of the victim’s reputation, money, or authority. An impersonator can use some information that can be easily acquired from the Internet, such as the name, address and identity number, for examples. Such freely available information can sometimes be sufficient to impersonate another person. An impersonation offense can lead to the depletion of the victim’s balance in the bank, the abuse of his credit card, or the ruining of the victim’s reputation. Data Tampering: The information maintained by the organization can be changed, forged or tampered with. The motive for this may be a direct hostile action against the organization with the aim of inflecting harm, or it

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may be an indirect act that serves the interests of other organizations. Indecent Websites: The Internet is a convenient medium for publicly distributing nude, obscene, and pornographic images. This poses a direct and unprecedented threat to the social life of the family in general and the individual in particular. Fortunately, however, there are many modern technologies and programs that prevent the infiltration of these evil sites.

(Source: Website for The U.S. Department of Education) Figure 1-8. Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.

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•

•

Website Hacking: One of the common crimes is hacking the websites. Department of Justice, Central Intelligence Agency, US Air Force, and the British Labor Party have all been subjected to this suffered this offense. The danger of hacking a website lies in the possibility of modifying some information on the site. For example, if the intruder changes the prices of some products, or adds information about goods that are not supported by the website, this could affect the credibility of the organization. Impersonating Websites: To carry out this crime, the criminal benefits from the fact that any computer on the Internet can interject itself between a website that is frequently visited and the browser on computer owned by a user who wants to access this particular website. From its medial position, the criminal’s computer can act as if it were the real owner of the website. The offender then can monitor any information exchanged between the victim, who is under the impression that he is interacting with the legitimate site, and the site itself. At that point, the perpetrator can choose to steal or change the acquired information. Email Flooding: Email flooding is performed by sending millions of email messages, often with large attachments, to vast numbers of users. This basically fills the communication ports and queues of the email servers, which results in the interruption of the service. Scientific research continues in this area that is aimed at developing programs that deal with these situations by allowing only limited number of messages when a sudden torrent occurs that may cause interruption or denial of service.

Chapter 2

ETHICS FOR THE COMPUTING PROFESSIONS 2.1. PROFESSIONAL ETHICS Every profession, regardless of its field, has ethical and professional foundations that its employees follow and its members abide by. The ethics of any profession is based on three main dimensions: its cognitive dimension, the behavioral and performance dimension, and the ethical dimension. This represents the special agenda that governs the profession with the standards and principles that represent the reference framework which can be invoked as needed. Such standards and principles are usually based on good human actions and decorum.

2.1.1. Definition of a Profession Profession can be defined as work that a person performs for his benefit or the benefit of others, such as a mechanic, electrician, or a technical foreman. A profession is considered a social phenomenon that can be observed, described, and analyzed. Such analysis is aimed at understanding the various factors that affect the profession and may help develop or regress it. A profession usually embodies group of individuals who are highly

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prepared by specialized educational institutions to perform the obligations imposed on them by the profession.

2.1.2. Definition of Professional Ethics There are many definitions for professional ethics. The aim is not to unify all the definitions, but to develop an understanding of the concept. Professional ethics is a set of ethical principles and rules of practice that have become the standard for the proper professional conduct. Each profession has its own ethics that formed and gradually developed over time until they were recognized and became certified ethically and legally. Professional ethics can also be thought of as a set of tasks, jobs, and responsibilities whose performance requires the possession of certain competencies that require learning and training in specialized organizations. The practice of any profession requires intellectual, technical, and management skills. These skills are gained through study, training, accumulation of experience, or through all of these collectively. After acquisition, these skills are practiced in accordance with their own behavioral and professional rules. The practitioner should be aware of the behavioral and professional rules associated with the skills and should accurately implement the ethical rules in order to eventually reach the required performance efficiently. Therefore, every profession has ethics and manners that the practitioner of the profession must commit and adhere to. The sources for such professional ethics and manners include: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Occupational legislations associated with the profession. Social customs and traditions related to the profession. Practices, precedents, and cases related to the profession. Literature, research, and studies related to the profession. International rules and norms that the practitioners must abide by.

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The study of professional ethics aims to apply administrative control on public positions, control professional and personal behaviors, understand occupational duties, and prioritize public interest over the personal interest. In addition, such studies are also intended to control the relationship between management and workers so that such relationship is based on mutual trust, in order to aide in the accomplishment of tasks and goals.

2.2. SOURCES FOR PROFESSIONAL ETHICS 2.2.1. Political Source The political source is the source that employees are influenced by in the political environment. This is especially true since ethics are largely intertwined with politics; as there is no politics without ethics and no ethics without politics. If professional ethics are practiced in the presence of democratic politics, it gives a product of positive values and norms.

2.2.2. Social Source Small communities, within the larger society, have their own sets of customs and traditions. Small communities can include, but are not limited to, tribes, sects, universities, organizations, and families. Each can respectively influence the ethics of the society as a whole. Furthermore, some see that loyalty to the smaller community as more vital than loyalty to the state, because it offers a greater sense of safety and stability. This gives rise to the importance of small community leaders’ roles in promoting righteous ethics to their respective communities. Therefore, the ethics of a small community leader that are derived from loyalty to the state are considered beneficial to the whole society.

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2.2.3. Economic Source Professional ethics are affected by the economic situation, the commitment to the presence of an ethical guide, and the satisfaction of the individual with one’s wages. Ethicality flourishes in light of the existence of economic and political stability; as the stability of prices in a nation is considered one of the important matters in the advancement of professional ethics and their development in the lives of workers.

2.2.4. Administrative and Organizational Source The administrative environment in educational institutions is affected by the existence of behavioral rules that govern them within the university environment. Some of them are of an ethical nature, such as working methods related to proper performance and sincerity of duty. This is especially true since the democratic leadership of the department head contributes to supporting ethical traditions in the university profession that is based on equality and direct dialogue, as well as encourages the performance of duties efficiently and effectively. Awareness of the professional ethics and adherence to its laws constitute the basic pillar of the ethical role in the society. In addition, the commitment to the essence of the rules of professional ethics constitutes the cornerstone for proceeding on the righteous path. The American Association of School Administrators has developed a set of guidelines governing the ethical rules that school administrators must abide by. The same guidelines would also apply to a department head in an academic institution. The set of guidelines include: •

Demonstrate the highest standards of perfection in personal qualities, including: honesty, consistency and honesty, in order to inspire confidence and inspiration of employees and the respect of the public organizations.

Ethics for the Computing Professions • • •

• • • •

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Serving the public interest with care, kindness and recognition, and giving it priority over personal interests. Seeking and encouraging professional development. Performing professional duties in the organization in a positive manner; as well as supporting communication, creativity and loyalty. Performing official duties in a manner that does not attain personal gain. Avoid any activity or practices that conflict with the public interest while performing official duties. Preserve and protect any information that was obtained while performing official duties. Respect, support, and improve (when necessary) the constitution, regulations, and laws that define the relationships between the government interests and employees.

2.3. PROFESSIONAL ETHICS IN ISLAM Unfortunately, there is a noticeable inconsistency between the noble professional ethics that the Holy Quran and the honorable hadith advocate and the practical and daily application of some of those Islamic ethics around the profession. The professional ethics in Islam and what Arab and Islamic wisdom calls for are principles that are inseparable and mutually compatible with each other and should not be contradictory. Professional ethics in Islam are in essence logically and naturally linked to the daily civil and earthly work. The link starts with daily interactions with others and includes mastery of career work and exercising of righteous human ethics. The link ends with adherence to the laws during the daily civil social practice in the civil society. There is a similar situation in the history of Arabians. Past Arabians had corruption in belief, worshipped idols, and indulged in many vices. At the same time, the Messenger (peace be upon him), before the prophecy mission, was called Al-Sadiq and Al-Ameen, which were admirable

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characteristics of the time. Other qualities and characteristics that were praised were honesty, magnanimity, and generosity. The bottom line is that good ethics such as veracity, honesty, fidelity are among the respected, admirable, and commendable characteristics in advanced societies. Note that these characteristics are some of the basic professional ethics. The motivation for commitment to ethics may be different from one person to another; where one may consider it part of religion whilst another considers them commendable characteristics, and a third may be afraid of others despise, ... and so on (Figure 2-1). Regardless of such, it is nearly impossible to find a society that prides itself of being a lying society or one that does not recognize honesty. Why? Because all societies know that these are bad traits that people are not praised for them but rather vilified; and therefore, basic ethics are considered a virtue by all societies.

2.4. PROFESSIONAL ETHICS IN MANAGEMENT Although every person should have professional ethics, the management of an organization must establish controls and penalties that compel employees to abide by the professional ethics as some employees may not care about them. It is in the best interest of the organization to make every employee adhere to professional ethics based on a bylaw or a policy that identifies and clarifies professional ethics from the perspective of the organization; such that it is binding to all employees and that there is a deterring punishment for those who violate it.

2.4.1. Relationship between Employees and Management It is well known that trust between employees and management is directly related to increasing the worker’s productivity. An employee, who knows that the management of the organization will appreciate his efforts in the short and long term, will be dedicated to his work. On the other hand, when the employee feels that the management of the organization does not

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fulfill its promises to the workers, this feeling will not be an incentive or motivation for this worker to develop the profession, advance creativity, or increase efficiency. Therefore, managers’ commitment to veracity, honesty, justice, loyalty, and mercy with workers leads to workers developing more confidence in the administration. The improved trust in the administration motivates the employees to focus on work and saves a lot of time that otherwise would be lost in rumors, suspicions, and negotiations.

(Source: Immigration Advisors Authority - New Zealand) Figure 2-1. Personal beliefs, values, attitudes and behavior.

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2.4.2. Relationship between Workers When veracity, cooperation, respect, and honesty are the prevailing ethics among workers, they lead to bursting energies of the workers in favor of work (will be referred to as “first case”, throughout this subsection). On the contrary, when the culture of deception, hypocrisy, and misconduct is dominant among workers, each worker will deal with his colleague cautiously, cooperate with him meagerly, hide substantial information from him, may even lie in the reports to the boss, and so forth and so on (will be referred to as “second case”, throughout this subsection). Table 2-1 compares the two cases. Table 2-1. Comparison of the two cases First Case Work teams can be formed to solve problems and develop the profession Work data found to be accurate and correct Experience passes from employees to their colleagues, as well as from generation to generation, and therefore the workers are always in a state of growth and development Employees willing to take on additional burdens Initiative from an employee to develop or progress workflow is welcomed Work is the primary concern for workers

Second Case Work teams fail because there is no spirit of cooperation and trust among workers A surplus of wrong data and misleading reports Employees hide information from colleagues, which results in the experience being lost by the end of the service of an employee and restart is often required Employees avoid taking on responsibilities and additional work New ideas met with suspicions and doubts regarding the hidden goals of the owner the initiative Skills of overcoming the machination of colleagues and getting them into trouble are the ultimate goal for each worker

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2.4.3. Establishing Professional Ethics in an Organization Abiding by ethics is something that every person must be committed to, but the management of the organization will not depend on the extent of the commitment of the workers to the ethics of the profession based on their personal convictions, but rather you need to obligate them to do so as part of the profession requirements. Organizations must be careful in the matter in which they define what is ethical and what is unethical in order for everyone to abide by it. In the absence of one set organizational standard, each employee’s personal measures differ from one another and breed inconsistency and chaos. Likewise, it is necessary to deal firmly with every violation of these ethics. Allowing each employee to behave in accordance to personal preference breeds a spirit of conflict. There must be deterrents in place to limit such occurrences. Organizations must work to intertwine the workers interests with that of the company in order to build an atmosphere of coherence and teamwork, rather than one of hostility and discontent. There must also be rules in place to outline how employees interact with parties outside of the company such as clients and suppliers. There should be rules in place to deter dishonesty through deceiving the external parties or accepting favors and bribes for special treatment. When it comes to reprimanding offenders of the code of ethics, the actions of the organization must be just and universally applied regardless of the offenders rank or position. Every individual must be held accountable without exception or favor. Unfortunately, neglect to professional ethics has made workers less efficient, has made companies distrustful, and has limited the progress and growth of the field. Going forward, ethics must have a higher priority amongst both employees and leadership within organizations in order to end the cycle of poor ethics.

2.4.3.1. Establishing Professional Ethics in the Work Place There is no doubt that there is something wrong when it comes to applying professional ethics in the public and private sectors, as evidenced by global and local statistics. The following are some examples:

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•

•

•

In a global business ethics survey, the Ethics & Compliance Initiative organization reported 45% incident of misconduct in the global workplace. In a 2018 survey of ethics in the United States workplace, Strategic Finance magazine, a publication of the Institute of Management Accountants, reported that 47% of respondents to the survey had personally observed conduct that violated either the law or organizational standards, and that over 66% of these misconduct incidents were recurring or part of an ongoing pattern. Comparison statistics from this study about misconducts in companies with strong and weak ethical cultures are shown in Table 2-2. A 2018 survey of employees in Europe, published by the Institute of Public Ethics, reported that 30% of employees have been aware of misconduct at work during the past year at work. A 2020 article, in the Saudi Arabian Al-Riyadh newspaper, cited a report by the Saudi General Auditing Bureau that reveals that 70% of the employees in the government sector are “undisciplined” in their work. The newspaper also cited another report by the Control and Anti-Corruption Commission that declares that 94% of the employees in the same sector are continuously absent from their work. According to the newspaper, the reports also show that the average production of a government employee was within three hours per day. Table 2-2. Comparison about misconducts in companies

Employees Reported Workplace Misconduct Experienced Retaliation for Reporting Observed Workplace Misconduct Experienced Pressure to Compromise Standards (Source: sfmagazine.com)

Companies With Strong Weak Culture Culture 88% 52% 43%. 55% 28%. 83% 12%. 34%

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2.4.3.2. Means for Establishing Professional Ethics Developing Self-Censorship A successful employee is the one who observes God Almighty before being watched by any officers, and he who takes into account the national interest before the personal interest. If this great concept is formed in the inner-self of the employee, the organization will undoubtedly succeed, because its employees will be loyal to it. Self-censorship was the force that drove the Commander of the Faithful, Omar bin Al-Khattab (may God be pleased with him), to inspect his people in his famous nightly marches in Medina. It is the self-censorship that elevated the faith of that shepherd whom Abdullah bin Omar passed by and asked him to slaughter a sheep and Ibn Omar would pay the price of the sheep for the shepherd. The shepherd apologized because the owner of the sheep did not authorize him to do something like this. So, as a test, Ibn Umar told him: if the owner asks you about the sheep, tell him that the wolf ate it. The shepherd then said: and where is God?! This self-censorship prevents betrayal and is necessary for honesty. Accordingly, honesty is the one essential component of ethics that the whole world agrees on. Archie B. Carroll reports on a study by Kouzes and Posner that found that “honesty was identified as the single most important characteristic of admired leaders. Not only do other managers rank honesty, integrity, and ethics highly, but studies of office workers also consistently assess honesty highly”. The Japanese are famous for their self-efficacy in performing work; as work is considered the source of existence of the Japanese citizen. Therefore, it is no surprise that only 1.1% of working days per year were lost due to absenteeism; and when the Japanese government tried to reduce the number of work hours, they failed because the workers prefer to keep the working longer hours. The means to develop self-censorship include, strengthening faith in God and piety, strengthening the national sense, bearing responsibility, believing in the importance of the job, and performing it properly. This is in addition to setting up precise regulations that prevent wrong individual

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judgments. Improper ethical practices sometimes result from weaknesses in the regulatory system or the lack of clarity of its rules and guidelines. An organization can designate a special office responsible for professional ethics, which is run by a group of employees. Such professional ethics office can have its own hotline for reporting any abuse of ethics. The payoff of such office on job performance will be quite noticeable and very impressive. It is also important, and required, for an organization and the employees to be aware of the rules and guidelines that are usually stated in the “work and workers” regulatory system. The provisions of the work system should also be placed in a visible location in every establishment. A list of the penalties associated with actions, violations, and failure to follow orders or complete obligations assigned to the worker should also be placed in a visible place in the organization. Awareness also includes correcting the religious and national understanding about work. If the worker is convinced that work is part of worship, and that work is essential to the national development, the prosperity of the country, and the improvement of the income level, the worker will have more commitment to professional ethics. Positive Role Model If the workers look at the manager and he does not adhere to the ethics of the profession, then they might as well do the same. The first caliph of the Muslims, Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq (may God be pleased with him), said: I have been appointed as your leader, and I am not the best one of you. If I do well, help me; and if I make a mistake, correct me. That is why when he died, the Commander of the Faithful Omar (may God be pleased with him) said: God have mercy on you, Abu Bakr, you made it difficult for any leader who comes after you. Holding the Officers and Employees Accountable Accountability is required to ensure the proper application of a system, which is commonly known as (Supervisory Agencies) that oversee the application of the system. Omar (may God be pleased with him) used to ask his people: if I employed the best man I know for the job and instructed him

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to do justice, did I fulfil my duty? They said: Yes. He said: No, not until I check his work to make sure he did what I told him to do or not. Continuous Evaluation of Employees When employees know that someone who develops himself is properly evaluated and rewarded, it motivates them to develop. In addition, periodic and continuous evaluation of employees helps the manager to know the levels of his employees, their competencies, and their creativity.

2.5. PROFESSIONAL ETHICS IN THE COMPUTING FIELD The professions in the computing field are important and required professions, particularly in the Arab market, as well as in the global market in general. The field of computing demands highly qualified professionals who are able to use most of the programming and software development tools and employ them very well. Anyone who wants to work in a profession in the computing field should be an experienced computer user and have long experience in dealing with various types of software, not only as an ordinary user, but as a person who is able to understand how to design and create the respective software. In addition, one must have the ability to acquire the skills required to work with and utilize programming and software development tools. Furthermore, one must be a master of mathematical foundations, as the computing professions do not depend on merely performing tasks, but rather requires a prolific mind, critical thinking, and the love for creativity and perseverance.

2.5.1. Software and Applications Design and Development Team In order to design and develop software programs and applications in a standard professional manner, the work group must consist of the following professionals: • •

System Analysts System Designers

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Programmers and Developers

2.5.1.1. Systems Analysts Systems analysts are the professionals responsible for studying and analyzing the requirements of the software system, its inputs and outputs, as well as determining the resources necessary for the implementation of the system. In addition, they are in charge of explaining how to implement the system, describing the dynamics of the project, and organizing the various relationships between the different elements of the system. Required Characteristics of a Successful Systems Analyst 1. Having knowledge of current information technology: Systems analysts are responsible for informing the users and managers how modern technologies can benefit their business. Therefore, these professionals should be familiar with existing and upcoming information technology. Some of this information can be acquired through university courses, scientific conferences, or training programs. In order to be familiar with the new technologies, a system analyst must review the various scientific journals and periodicals in the field of computers and information systems, as well as join and follow the work of the specialized organizations in the field. 2. Having experience in computer programming: Regardless of whether a systems analyst will write code or not, one should know how to program because it is the link between users and programmers. However, one should not assume that a good programmer will necessarily be a good systems analyst, and conversely, a bad programmer will not be a good systems analyst; as such association has not been established. Notwithstanding the controversy of the importance of the programming experience, it is difficult to imagine how a systems analyst can accurately prepare the specification of a software system if he or she does not have some experience in programming.

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3. Having general knowledge in business administration and management matters; such as accounting, marketing, and organizational behavior. 4. Having experience in solving problems: This includes creatively providing alternative solutions to problems and needs. Creativity and intuition are talents a person is usually born with, although they can certainly be developed, to some extent. 5. Having skills in communication between people: A systems analyst should be able to interact with people efficiently, orally or in writing. He or she should also master the art of interviewing people and presenting topics. Additionally, he or she should be fluent in at least one other natural language, such as English, French, or Arabic. 6. Have skills in interpersonal relationships: A systems analyst should be able to cooperate and settle disputes between members of their team. 7. Be flexible and adaptive: There are no two software system development projects that are exactly the same. Each project has its own challenges, so there is no single method that can be applied to develop a system. Every successful systems analyst knows this, and therefore learns to be flexible to adapt to new challenges and situations with every project they proceed to develop. 8. Personality and ethics: The nature of a systems analyst requires them to have a strong personality and to have an ethical sense, because ethicality is a quality that makes a person understand the difference between right and wrong and act accordingly. 9. Finally, a systems analyst must have advanced professional training and technical skills in the field of systems analysis and design.

2.5.1.2. Systems Designers The role of system designers comes after the determination of requirements and analysis phases, where the system now needs designed in

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general terms. This phase includes designing the objects and models, as well as planning the structure for each object. Additionally, in this phase, the layouts, patterns, locations, and appearance of the screens are designed and linked together.

2.5.1.3. Programmers and Developers The role of the programmers and developers comes after the analysis and design phases, where the models, the designed screens, and the source code are actually implemented. The sources code is in turn responsible for operating the required software system (Figure 2-2). The following example will illustrate and help clarify the roles of the different professional needed to design and develop software programs and applications, as indicated above. Suppose an organization is interested in developing a software system for managing a company from a financial and commercial point of view. Systems analysts will study the documentation cycle for this company, how it deals with other companies, the dynamics of work in terms of documents used in different work scenarios, and how the data flows from one stage to another. Thus, the system as a whole is analyzed in an integrated and comprehensive manner. After this phase, comes the role of the systems designers, where models and layouts of screens, and their positions and presentation are designed and linked. After this phase, comes the role of programmers, who implement the designs and write the necessary programming codes to create all the patterns and link them together. From the example above, it is clear that the programmer is the person who is responsible for writing the necessary code that essentially meant to breathe life into the system and make it as one interconnected unit that ultimately - when run by the user - performs all the tasks for which it was designed. Therefore, the programmer is the intermediate link between the computer and the user; both of whom do not know the language of the other. The programmer understands, interprets, and translated both languages. The programmer is not only the one who learns a programming language, but the one who knows the art of programming. That is, how to use the appropriate strategy at the right time and in the right place. This in itself is a divine talent such as drawing and sculpting. As for the rest of the

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programming work, it really does not exceed utilizing the programming materials and software tools to transform an idea into a technical programmatic template to produce the software product.

(Source: tco-team.com) Figure 2-2. Programming languages.

In order for a person to begin a professional career in the field of programming, one must first get acquainted with the types of programming languages in terms of the strengths, weaknesses, and the application area for each of them. One should also learn the principles of programming and the basic programming constructs, as well as the common concepts among all programming languages.

2.5.2. Professional and Ethical Responsibilities of Software Engineers Software engineers must accept the fact that their responsibilities include more than just using technical skills, as their work is bound by a set of local, national, and international laws. Accordingly, if they wish to earn the respect as professionals in their field, they must act in a responsible manner, morally and ethically. It is imperative that software engineers adhere to the conventional rules and standards of honor, integrity,

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righteousness, and integrity. They should not use their skills and abilities in any dishonorable or disreputable manner. However, there are areas in which standards of acceptable behavior are not lawfully binding but are rather related to loosely-defined concepts in professional responsibility. The following are some of these concepts: •

•

•

•

Confidentiality: Software engineers should respect the privacy and confidentiality of information about their clients and employers, regardless of whether or not a confidentiality agreement is signed. Competence: Software engineers must refrain from giving false information about their level of qualification and competence, and should not knowingly accept any work outside of the score of their competence. Intellectual Property Rights: Software engineers must be familiar with the local laws that govern the use of intellectual property, such as patents, copyrights, licensing, etc. They must also ensure that the intellectual property of their employers and clients is protected. Computer Misuse: Software engineers should not use their technical skills to harm others’ computers. Abuse ranges from relatively trivial things (for example playing games on the employer’s machine) to very serious matters (such as spreading viruses, for example).

Professional societies and organizations play an important role in this regard. Renowned professional organizations, such as Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers and British Computer Society, publish regulations of professional conduct and rules of ethics. Members of these organizations also pledge to abide by these regulations and rules when signing for membership. Software engineers should commit to making the profession of analysis, design, development, testing and maintenance of programs a respectable, beneficial, and feasible profession. In accordance with their commitment to

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the health, safety and welfare of the public, software engineers must adhere to the following eight principles: 1. Public: Software engineers must work in accordance with the public interest. 2. Client and Employer: Software engineers must work in a manner that serves the interests of their clients and employers, and that is compatible with the public interest. 3. Product: Software engineers must ensure that their products and the modifications and revisions associated with them meet the highest possible professional standards. 4. Integrity: Software engineers must maintain integrity and independence in their professional opinions. 5. Management: Managers and leaders in the field of software engineering must contribute and pledge to abide by the ethical approach to managing the software development and maintenance process. 6. Profession: Software engineers must improve the reputation and image of the profession, in line with the public interest. 7. Colleagues: Software engineers must be fair and objective with their colleagues and provide support and assistance to them. 8. Self-Development: Software engineers should participate in continuous professional development programs that are related to the practice of their profession. They should also promote the ethical approach in practicing within the profession.

2.5.3. Professional Responsibilities of Network Engineers In order for the computer network to function properly, a group of network engineers is usually assigned the responsibility for operating and maintaining the network. The larger the network, the more problems it may present, and consequently the more burdens for the network engineers. They must know of the huge amounts of information about the network. This is

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where network management science comes in; it is a science that evolved to help network engineers perform their professional jobs (Figure 2-3). The goal of building a data network is to fulfill the organization’s needs in providing data communication operations. To achieve this, the network engineer must perform the necessary operations of planning (i.e., designing) the network. The network engineer performs a comprehensive survey of the places where the users gather, so that extensions can be added to the existing network. These network extensions are intended to make the new required places reachable via communication. After developing the network creation plan, the network engineer performs the following functions to build the information network:

(Source: corptocorp.org) Figure 2-3. Network engineer.

• • • • •

Prepare the network design plan. Determine the maintenance measures. Study the possibility of expansion. Develop a corrective maintenance plan. Study the economic feasibility and determine the costs.

The network engineer first uses the network plan to determine the required connections, as well as the hardware and software needed to operate the network. After building the network, the network engineer will need to

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continue with its maintenance process. For examples, network drivers and computers associated with them may change, the network may be expanded, malfunctions may occur, or parts of the network may require replacement. Change in the needs of network users usually will affect the network creation plan, which in turn requires a plan to expand the network. Expanding the existing network is usually better than re-designing and building another new network. The network engineer should take these factors into consideration and employ the right solutions to carry out the network expansion procedures. The network engineer must also have the knowledge about and access to the new products. That is in addition to having the initiative and ability to replace products that are aging or wearing down with new products; in order to achieve economic operations using the available resources, as well as better service for network users at an affordable cost. The network engineer must also use the appropriate tools necessary to inspect and repair the network malfunctions.

Professional Responsibilities of the Network Administrator The terms Network Administrator, Network Specialist, and Network Analyst are used to refer to the organization hierarchy of the duties of computer network engineers that are related to network administration. Network administrators perform duties that are equivalent to System Administrators, and include the maintenance of network hardware and software, as well as monitoring and configuring network components and elements. Network administrators are also responsible for allocating addresses to network devices, configuring the routing tables, and specifying the network authentications. Network specialists and analysts, on the other hand, focus on assessing network security, inspecting malfunctions, and diagnosing network problems. They are also responsible for maintaining processes related to the authentication and backup operations of network systems. Objectives of Network Management Organizations and institutions usually invest a lot of money and spend time and effort in building data networks and appointing engineers to

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maintain these networks. It may be preferable from a cost perspective that the network system itself automatically inspects some of the processes performed within it. Such arrangement can reduce the burden on network maintenance engineers. From this idea the science of network management evolved. The science of network management is the science of controlling complex data networks in order to increase their efficiency and productivity. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) divided the network management functions into five basic functions: • • • • •

Fault Management. Configuration Management. Security Management. Performance Management. Account Management.

2.5.4. Professional Responsibilities of Web Designers Computer scientists have been interested in developing and updating internet pages as well as adding new ones. Therefore, many programming languages emerged that can be integrated into websites and webpages to add better control and interaction for the users. The intense competition between companies has led to the emergence of many Internet development tools and programming languages (Figure 2-4). In terms of interacting with the user, webpages can be divided into two basic types: static and dynamic webpages. Static webpages are pages that do not interact with users; meaning that they are fixed in their content and do not depend on the user input or the time of review. This type of webpage requires learning HTML only one of software systems that are used to develop these websites, such as Microsoft Front Page. It is also possible to learn one of the scripting languages that allow the development of clientbased programs. Scripting languages are used to modify the appearance of the webpages after they are loaded by the customer, which gives them an attractive look. Dynamic webpages, on the other hand, are those that interact with users and their contents change. Such webpages are associated with a

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database that allows the contents of the webpages to change based on the user inputs that are sent through another webpage. This type of webpages requires learning one of the programming techniques that are used for the server side. It is also possible to learn one of the scripting languages that allow the development of server-based programs. Web designers should be fully aware of how to design and develop both types of webpages using ready-made software tools or packages. In addition, a web designer should study the different kinds of effective web programming languages to learn the fundamental differences between these languages. One of the most famous programing languages that used by web designers is JavaScript, which is widely used for developing applications that work for the web client because it is compatible with most Internet browsers. VBScript, on the other hand, is the default language for developing web server applications. Web designers should also be familiar with the technology of Active Server Pages (ASP), as well as how to deal with databases using ActiveX Data Objects (ADO) programming interface that enables the programmer to develop effective dynamic websites or the so-called web-based applications. Web designers should also have good command of image processing techniques. Web designers should consider the following guidelines when designing a website or a webpage:

(Source: kissclipart.com) Figure 2-4. Web design.

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Abdelrahman Karrar and Kamal Dahbur • • • • • • • • • • •

The website should not contain any pornographic images that offend decency. The webpage should be generally attractive. The webpage should include various multimedia elements. The webpage should be accessible through different search engines. The webpage should be easy to download effortlessly. The website should be easy to browse and navigate through. The icons on the website should symbolize their content. The contents of the websites should be sufficiently documented. The hyperlinks on the website should be easy to handle. The website should be easy to maintenance and updated. The website should be safe.

Chapter 3

PRIVACY AND ANONYMITY 3.1. PRIVACY IN THE COMPUTER WORLD Privacy in the computer world in general, and in the internet world in particular, is an urgent issue. The increasing numbers of Internet users and the attachment of those users with this giant electronic network have made the protection of privacy a difficult process that troubles Internet users as well as the business owners. This is because the availability of data for individuals and organizations on the Internet has made it vulnerable to abuse by intruders. The Internet basically started as a scientific military project that the US Department of Defense adopted as a link between specialists in scientific affairs. In the beginning there was trust between the users of this network, because their interest was focused on scientific knowledge without paying attention to any other aspects. Now, however, the presence of intruders and thieves on the network has become an inevitable fact. As a result, many ethical problems have surfaced, including the problem of protecting the privacy, which will be discussed in this section (Figure 3-1).

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3.1.1. Economic Impact of Privacy The magnitude of the risk to privacy is evident when examining the volume of transactions that take place across the Internet. The ease of obtaining personal computers and the ability to access the Internet for individuals has increased the likelihood of intruders accessing the data of others. Despite the massive spread of the computers, the market of the personal computers is still booming. This was confirmed by Steve Palmer, CEO of Microsoft Corporation, as he believes that the personal computer market will continue to expand, and he expected to witness a 60% increase annually. The commercial use of the Internet in the business sector is constantly expanding, as it is expected to be prosperous for many years to come. Intercompany trading (the consumer is excluded from these numbers) amounted to 4.1 trillion US dollars and will reach 7.2 trillion by the end of this year. These gigantic numbers for inter-company trading represents only 70% of the total transactions of international companies, whose percentage of transactions over the Internet is 10% of the total transactions. As a natural result of the expansion of corporate activities on the Internet, we find that there are increasing numbers of people who are beginning to accept this type of commercial services. Statistical reports indicate that the amount that consumers spend in the electronic market will double 6 times in the year 2005. The Wall Street Magazine (1999 Sapsford) performed a survey questionnaire on 132 companies that deal in electronic commerce in order to understand the concerns of customers in regards to privacy of information. The survey found that 83% of these organizations consider intrusion on privacy to be major problem, and the amounts stolen using credit cards amounted to 5% of the total stolen amounts. The study also shows the difficulty of catching the intruders on commercial transactions using the Internet; as 28% of these companies do not know the whereabouts of the stolen amounts.

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(Source: marketingcharts.com – Kantar TNS) Figure 3-1. Chart showing consumers data privacy concerns.

It is possible to visualize the amount of risk posed by intrusion on data transmitted over the Internet when one recognizes that online sales in 2016 are 15-78 times online sales in 1998. According to statistics by “Statista”, 57% percent of the global population, in 2019, has access to the internet, and 53% of online users are currently more concerned about their online privacy than the previous year. Statista also reports that, in 2019, 47% of respondents in the United States felt that their data and personal information online was somewhat vulnerable to hackers; while in comparison only 2% of respondents felt their data was not vulnerable at all. The issue of protecting the privacy, in light of the technology revolution, appears to be an urgent requirement more than ever, especially with the increase in privacy violations that occur across information networks. Table 3-1 shows the increased risk of this violation, as it shows the response of the participants in a study, prepared in 2000, to measure several issues related to whether the user believes he was subjected to a violation of his privacy or not.

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Abdelrahman Karrar and Kamal Dahbur Table 3-1. Summary of responses to privacy survey

Participant Response Victim of Privacy Violation NOT a Victim of Privacy Violation Do Not Know (Source: Computing Ethics [in Arabic])

1995 25% 75%. 0%.

1998 25% 75% 0%

2000 27% 70% 2%

Recently, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) arrested a group of 62 people for the theft from tens of thousands of users on the Internet, as 56,000 customers and commercial users of the Internet were victims of electronic theft; where the stolen amounts reached $117 million, with the average individual loss ranging from $50 to $5,000. In San Diego, California alone, for three years in a row, internet thieves were able to seize $50 million. Electronic violations vary, as they are either directed at individuals or directed at commercial establishments. However, statistics indicate that the percentage of fraud on individuals far exceeds the percentage of fraud on commercial organizations. The phenomenon of electronic fraud is widespread in all countries where computer services, especially the internet, are available. The rate of fraud increases in developed countries, where the percentage of commercial transactions via the Internet increases, and consequently fraud incidents increase. Therefore, it seems expected that The United States of America tops this list due to the wide spread of electronic commercial transactions in it.

3.1.2. Ethical Issues Related to Privacy Some of the questions that arise in this area include: • • •

What is meant by the privacy that should be protected? How much privacy does an individual have the right to protect? Do governments and businesses have the right to retain information about individuals?

Privacy and Anonymity •

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What are the legal steps necessary to protect the privacy of individuals?

These questions represent a sample of questions of an ethical nature that resulted from the availability of individual information on computers, and the possibility of its access by others. The principal question is: What is the ethical standard on which computer users can judge whether or not the information can be used for various purposes? This is because when individuals are determining their ethical position on a particular action, they are really determining the values that govern their actions. In this regard, ethical theories can provide the rational basis for ethical judgments, and thus clarify decisions for one making an ethical judgement. Studying the various aspects of human relationships on the Internet or information technology is very important because of their serious psychological, ethical, social, and legal implications. In this chapter, we will address the problem of protecting privacy because the concept has an important impact on electronic transactions.

3.2. THE CONCEPT OF PRIVACY In principle, there is hardly any dispute about the necessity for every individual to enjoy the right to privacy. Even though there is agreement on the principle of privacy, there is a disagreement on what is considered to be part of the privacy that a person keeps from others. The first question to be asked about this issue is in regards to the nature of privacy. The concept of privacy seems ambiguous and is not easy to define. Therefore, there is no agreed-upon definition of privacy; rather, there are several definitions of the concept of privacy. There is really very little consensus on what privacy means, so we need to formulate an understanding of the concept of privacy before discussing how to deal with it from an ethical perspective. Upon reviewing previous studies, it is clear that there is no agreement on a precise definition of the concept of privacy. In general, it is defined as

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state of solitude in which individuals demand to be concealed from the view of other people and government. Eugene Wang defined three features that distinguish the concept of privacy: • • •

Isolation: the state in which the individual is isolated and away from the interference of others. Confidentiality: the state in which one prefers that his data and information be distant from others. Identity: the state in which one possesses the right to a decision, and to determine how to act.

Privacy in the broader sense of the word is to limit the interference of others in anything that belongs to the individual. Adhering to the general meaning of privacy, implies that the individuals are isolated from everyone’s interference in their affairs, such that no one can reach them or know anything about their private life. Complete privacy is practically unimaginable for anyone living in a community with others. On the other hand, the lack of privacy in the broader sense means that the individual becomes fully monitored by others, such that others know everything about him or her. It is clear that both sides of privacy are incomplete. Complete privacy is not possible and lack of privacy is undesirable. Therefore, Karen Horney considers the excessive demand for privacy a symptom of neurological diseases. No one can imagine living completely isolated from others, because the individual cannot meet all his needs on his own, and thus needs the members of society. Once the individual begins dealing with others, one loses part of his privacy, as people whom he or she deals with must know some information about him or her. Conversely, regardless of how advanced the intrusion methods are, it is virtually impossible to access all private information about an individual if they choose to keep it confidential. Besides not being able to completely isolate themselves from society, an individual often wants to inform others some of his private information. A poor person, for example, needs to inform social and charitable organizations about his financial condition in order to be able to get help.

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Similarly, a patient must tell the doctor his medical history in order for the doctor to be able to prescribe the right treatment. Therefore, it is a necessity in a person’s life to communicate some information about one’s self. Man is by nature a social being who cannot do without others, and when dealing with others, they must know a certain amount of information about the person they are dealing with. When discussing privacy, it is important to distinguish the two types. The first type is related to intruding on the behavior of the individual. This type of privacy can be referred to as behavioral privacy. A person who sits in his bedroom wants to keep a degree of privacy, so that no one sees him in his bedroom or watches what he does. The second type of privacy is related to obtaining information that pertains only to the individual, which can be called the privacy of information (Figure 3-2). The nationality of the individual, his national identity, his social status, his health status, the place of residence, and his phone number are examples of the type of information that pertains only to a particular individual and no one else. An individual loses part of this privacy to the extent that he is known to others. The president of a country, for example, loses much of his privacy due to the focus of the spotlight on him; while a simple worker does not lose the same amount because others are not interested in obtaining information about him.

(Source: saudigazette.com) Figure 3-2. Information privacy concerns.

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This section will focus on the second type of privacy, privacy of information. If we agree that privacy is the right of the individual is to prevent others from accessing his own information, this raises the question: is privacy a basic right that the individual acquires as a human being or is it a right acquired by law? Reflecting on the nature of the concept of privacy suggests that privacy is a fundamental right and it is a necessity in a person’s life. This is especially true considering that when a person loses his privacy, he loses his individuality, and thus turns into a mere member of the society that cannot be distinguished, by any special characteristic, from the rest of the members of the society. On the other hand, knowledge is an element of power. The more we know about someone, the more we can use this information to harm him. It can be inferred that privacy is a fundamental right of the human being by associating it with human’s dignity, which many scholars accept as a fundamental right. A person whose privacy is continuously violated loses a large part of his human dignity because when others know certain information about the individual, which he does not want them to know about, it inevitably leads to contempt by others, and thus directly affects his human dignity (Figure 3-3). An illegitimate child, for example, does not want anyone to know about this information, because others knowing about it may lead to others looking at him inferiorly, and this directly affects his dignity. Violating the freedom of the individual by the violating his privacy exposes this person to exploitation, which in turn limits his freedom. Limiting the freedom of any person is considered a violation of his human dignity, and an infringement on his right to enjoy this freedom. The right of the individual to privacy is particularly distinguished from the rest of the fundamental rights of the human being. The right to life, liberty, and dignity, for example, are basic rights of the individual, and therefore he is not entitled to waive them for fear of losing one’s humanity In other words, the right to life, liberty, and dignity are considered absolute rights that are not subject to discretion or progression. Privacy, on the other hand, is a single concept that varies relatively when it comes to specifics.

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(Source: pediaa.com) Figure 3-3. Difference between privacy and confidentiality.

The right to privacy of information is to give the individual the right to withhold his information to enable him to preserve his own interests. However, this interest is discretionary. It may be in the best interest of the individual to reveal some of his information, while withholding other information. In this sense, privacy is considered a type of property that a person can use in a way that benefits him. Hence the personal information, as Francis Chlapowski says, is not only an aspect of the human character, but the goal of the character. He refers to John Locke as saying that every person has ownership of himself, and therefore he has the right to rule over what is produced by him. According to this, a person deals with his own information in the same way he deals with the material things he owns. So, just as a person deals with the house he owns, by selling it or renting it, he can handle the information related to him in a way that benefits him. Therefore, not all knowledge of another person’s information is a violation

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of his privacy unless we know that this person considers this information as part of his privacy. Accordingly, it is the individual who determines the scope of this privacy, as privacy is neither beneficial nor harmful on its own. The limits of privacy for an individual may differ from that of another person. When a person does not mind that others know about the details of his marital life, this information is not considered a privacy of this individual, although it may be considered private with respect to another person. Hence, information privacy can be defined as a certain amount of information that a person does not wish to share with others. As for determining the amount of privacy, it is really up to the person. It has so far been established that privacy derives its legitimacy from being a fundamental right, and that privacy has a close relationship with human dignity. There are also areas where privacy is considered essential. James Rachel advocates that privacy is sometimes necessary to preserve an individual’s interest to compete with others. Violating the privacy of an exconvict by disclosing his past, for example, may affect his opportunity to get a job. Some people associate privacy with the individual’s mental and psychological health. Sydney Guard suggests that individuals may become victims of mental or psychological illness due to psychological stress resulting from violating their privacy and knowing that others know information they don’t wish to share with them. A sterile person, for example, may suffer from severe mental illness if he finds out that his medical file was stolen and may be publicized. There is another important aspect in which the impact of privacy can be significant. Privacy can help create the right conditions for innovation and ingenuity away from distraction caused by being observed by others while conducting experiments in a particular field. A scientist who is conducting experiments for a new discovery, for example, may go through many failed experiments before he reaches the desired result. If this scientist knows that his privacy is vulnerable to violation, he may refrain from continuing his work for fear of failure. Therefore, protecting the privacy of this scientist provides him with psychological stability without any fear of failure.

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Despite the many benefits of privacy in the lives of individuals, it is a value that recognizes the right of the individual to decide what information he would like to disclose about himself, and this value may conflict with other important values in the society. Examples of such values include the interest of the society in creating an atmosphere for freedom of expression, preventing and punishing crime, protecting intellectual property, and running government business in an efficient manner. In some cases, maintaining the security of the society requires knowledge of some of the information that may be considered part of the privacy of individuals. The reasoning for doing so is that the interest of society has a priority over the privacy of some of the members of the society. In the instance of moral values conflicting, the moral value that is of the greatest importance should get priority.

3.3. INVASION OF PRIVACY The treatment of the privacy issues from the perspective of the utility theory can be understood through the types of risks to privacy and can be divided into four primary categories as follows: • • • •

Invasion of privacy of an individual by another individual Invasion of privacy of an individual by a group Invasion of privacy of a group by an individual Invasion of privacy of a group by another group

3.3.1. Invasion of Privacy of an Individual by another Individual No matter how much information technology can avoid or defend attempts to infiltrate and expose information, there are still vulnerabilities that intruders can take advantage of for their personal interests. Individuals are continuously being harassed and their personal information being

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targeted, especially on the Internet. Many Internet users, for example, are making countless endeavors to access the information of other people. To discuss this situation on the basis of the utility theory, let’s assume the following two hypothetical cases:

Case 1 A user of an electronic communication program over the Internet enjoys trying to break through the penetration barriers and infringing on others’ devices in order to gain access to their private content. Notice that the benefits in this case are conflicting between the two parties involved. The first party infringes on the privacy of the second party and gains the pleasure of being able to achieve this goal. The victim, on the other hand, is in a very weak psychological and financial condition, as this person may be subjected to attempts of blackmail or threat from the aggressor. As it is evident from this case, the effect of this intrusion has two dimensions: one is positive and the other one is negative. The positive effect is on the infringer, and the negative effect is on the victim. The benefits in this scenario are obtaining pleasure for the aggressor and getting rid of pain and healing for the victim. In order to determine how ethical this behavior is, we must compare the two benefits to see which is greater. Case 2 A user tries to hack his ex-wife’s device because he wants to access a set of electronic files that he believes can be used in court to obtain custody rights for his children. This case presents a critical problem for both parties: the man and the ex-wife. Where the man is interested in accessing information about his divorced wife, and the ex-wife is anxious to protect her private information. The question is whether the husband has the right to intrude on his ex-wife’s information in order to win the custody case in court.

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(Source: depositphotos.com) Figure 3-4. Custody Battle.

Clearly, the father’s regaining custody of his children is considered a win and a great benefit for him. On the other end, the mother’s keeping her children provides her with great happiness. However, in this situation things are slightly different, and the analysis should not be limited to the man and his ex-wife. There is a third party that we should know the effect of this situation on, the children. The evaluation of which of the two benefits is greater depends on the benefit attained by the children. In other words, if the benefit of the children is greater in their stay in the care of their mother, the husband’s action would be unethical; because the amount of benefit to him does not equal the misery and pain of the wife and children if they are taken back by their father (Figure 3-4).

3.3.2. Invasion of Privacy of an Individual by a Group The term group here refers to commercial establishments that pursue various ways to obtain information about potential customers ahead of their competition. The information may include the taste and preferences of the potential customers, which can be used to market the products of these establishments. Kenneth Laudon refers to the utility theory as the theory of collective consequentialists. This theory, as Laudon says, gives priority to

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the greatest pleasure for the greatest number, and requires maximizing the pleasure of all. This implies that the group’s actions are ethical according to the criterion established by the utility theory, because the benefit of a group from violating an individual’s privacy is greater than the degree of suffering and pain that the individual may be subjected to. Let’s consider the following case as an example:

Case 3 Eugene Wang used to work for a well-known software company Borland International, and he wants to join a new company. Eugene used his email at his current job to send company secrets to the new company he wants to work for. Borland discovered the matter, seized these emails and used them as evidence against Eugene in court. Note, in the aforementioned case, how Eugene misused the privileges granted to him by the company and utilized his position to obtain company secrets. Then he tries to use this information as leverage for the new job. The utility theory in this case favors the community or professional group over the employee’s benefit. This is because the total benefit of the organization is much greater than the degree of pain and misery resulting from Eugene being summoned to court, facing the possibility of imprisonment or other legal penalties, and even losing the job at both organizations.

3.3.3. Invasion of Privacy of a Group by an Individual It may come to mind that the criterion of utility theory, which uses the amount of happiness resulting from the action, that this happiness is measured only quantitatively. However, this is not true. The qualitative aspect of this happiness is also taken into account. The amount of pain endured by the individual may be greater than the sum of happiness that the group may gain; then subjecting this individual to such pain is unethical. Similarly, achieving an individual’s happiness at the expense of violating the group’s privacy is not justified. This is based on the assumption that the

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sum of the pain inflicted on the group is greater than the amount of happiness that an individual may attain.

3.3.4. Invasion of Privacy of a Group by another Group The invasion of a group’s privacy by another group can be discussed in a similar manner to the first case, which discussed the privacy of an individual by another individual. There are common examples of a violation of a company’s privacy by a competitor company. Espionage cases, which are carried out by different countries and organizations to gain access to the secrets of other countries and organizations, can be classified under this type. The problem with this type of violation is how to determine the total benefit. From the perspective of the aggressor, it views this as serving its interests and happiness. By such action, it aspires to control and reveal the secrets of the other party and defeat its competition, which may be economic, political, military, or any other competition. While the victim is trying hard to defend this action in order to preserve its crucial secrets. The utility theory, in this situation, considers the actions of the first party to be ethically justified if the benefits resulting from these actions are greater than the disadvantages to the society. In the discussion above, we presented some examples of violation of privacy and explored how such actions are evaluated from the perspective of the utility theory. We have seen how the utility theory relies mainly on the amount of benefit involved in any act. An action is considered ethical if the benefit resulting from it is greater than the amount of pain it may cause. We have also learned that benefit is measured as the amount of happiness that an action adds or the amount of pain and suffering that it removes. However, it can be said that this theory cannot be entirely relied upon because, in different cases, there could be more than one factor component that could induce unfair judgement based on this theory.

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3.3.5. Position of the Duty School on Privacy At the beginning of the discussion about the position of the duty school regarding the subject of privacy, it must be noted that Immanuel Kant, who is the most famous scholar of this theory, did not address the issue of privacy. Therefore, the duty school’s position on this subject will be based on applying the general rules, on which this theory is based, to the topic of privacy. Before discussing the position of the duty theory on the privacy issue, let us first recall the basis of the ethics duty theory. The basis, as Kant emphasized in many of his writings, is the human dignity; preserving this dignity is the basis for any ethical act. Kant did not only define the theoretical foundation for the duty theory; rather, he also established two principles to be used as a mechanism for applying the foundation of the theory in order to examine the ethicality of an action. These two principles are the treatment of the human being as an end and not a means, and the suitability of an act to become a general law. In the same manner that we tried to understand the position of the utility school on the issue of infringement of privacy, we will try to apply the criteria of the duty theory to some examples in an attempt to understand its ethical position on these hypothetical cases.

Case 4 A person purchases a product from a company that sells its products online. During this purchase operation, the person enters some of his private information, including his email address. Sometime afterwards, he starts receiving many emails from companies promoting their products. He discovers that the company he purchased from has distributed his data to other companies. In this case, we find that the company from which this person made a purchase has dealt with this customer, not like a person who has dignity and respect, but rather as a source for obtaining financial benefit. The dignity of this person and his right to enjoy his privacy that prevents others from harassing him were not observed by this company. The other companies also

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have only viewed this person as a potential customer. Consequently, all of these companies have committed an unethical act.

Case 5 A person purchases a collection of books from a website using his credit card. After a while he discovers that his data has been disclosed to a company that is conducting a survey about the tendencies and preferences of online consumers. This situation is less clear than its predecessor because the identity of the person taking the survey is not recognized, but rather he is treated as a data set for an anonymous participant. Consequently, there is no personal harm that can be caused to this participant as a result of the survey operation. Can we consider this act as a violation of the buyer’s privacy, or is obtaining data related to him, without information about his identity, not considered an infringement on his privacy? If we apply the second criterion for the ethicality of the act, which is the suitability of this act to be a general law, the initial impression is that we will not find any objection in allowing the collection of this data for this purpose, especially if this purpose aims to improve the service to benefit the consumers. If we also consider that this act is not an insult to the dignity of this buyer, as long as his identity will remain unknown, we can conclude that the school of duty does not consider this act to be unethical because it passes the test of ethical standard. So the duty school does not consider obtaining data related to a person or group of people to be totally ethical or unethical. Rather, it is unethical if it is associated with the identification of these persons.

3.3.6. Position of Islam on Privacy A careful search in Islamic religious texts will not find any literal mention of privacy per say. Rather, it is mentioned in these texts in the sense of spying on people. The position of Islam is clear in explicitly prohibiting espionage in the Holy Quran, in verse 12 of Surat Al-Hujurat, “O you who

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have believed, avoid much [negative] assumption. Indeed, some assumption is sin. And do not spy or backbite each other. Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his brother when dead? You would detest it. And fear Allah; indeed, Allah is Accepting of repentance and Merciful” (Figure 3-5). The Sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him) stressed and emphasized the protection of this human right, as the noble hadith stated “don’t look for the other’s faults and don’t spy” (Sahih Bukhari, Hadith 6724). In another hadith, the Messenger directs Muslims by saying, “Do not harm the Muslims, nor revile them, nor spy on them to expose their secrets. For indeed whoever tries to expose his Muslim brother’s secrets, Allah exposes his secrets wide open, even if he were in the depth of his house” (Jami` AtTirmidhi, Volume 4, Book 25, Hadith 2032) (Figure 3-6). Therefore, the basic principle in Islamic law is that there is a privacy of a person that others are prohibited from infringing on it through espionage or spying. Islam considers the home to be the place where a person exercises his privacy, without being watched by people. Therefore, there is an emphasis in Islamic texts on protecting this privacy even from the closest people. This is clear and explicit in the Noble Quran, in verse 58 of Surat An-Nur, “O you who have believed, let those whom your right hands possess and those who have not [yet] reached puberty among you ask permission of you [before entering] at three times: before the dawn prayer and when you put aside your clothing [for rest] at noon and after the night prayer. [These are] three times of privacy for you. There is no blame upon you nor upon them beyond these [periods], for they continually circulate among you some of you, among others. Thus does Allah make clear to you the verses; and Allah is Knowing and Wise.” Notice that the word “loins” (i.e., “awrah” in the original Arabic text of this verse) corresponds to the word “privacy” (in the above translation of the verse), which is used to refer to everything that a person is ashamed of. Also, in the terminology of scholars and jurists, it is what must be covered and is forbidden to look at. Accordingly, entry to homes was highly restricted and controlled and in jurisprudence to guarantee their sanctity. Islamic Sharia also prohibited espionage or spying, which is considered a major violation of privacy.

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(Source: quran.mu) Figure 3-5. Verse 12 of Surat Al-Hujurat.

(Source: quranx.com) Figure 3-6. Hadith 6724 and Hadith 2032.

As a result of Islam’s concern for privacy and to enforce the prohibition of infringement on the privacy of any person, Islam imposed a penalty for those who practice the act of espionage or spying. The penalty legislated by Islamic law on someone who commits espionage or spying is to be

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reprimanded by the judge so that he does not return to his action. Thus, we find that Islamic jurisprudence has put great emphasis on the issue of respecting the privacy of a person by forbidding any probing for his faults and seeking any secrets about his private life (professional, family, financial and medical), whether in his home or his workplace. Let us turn our attention to Islam’s position regarding infringements on human privacy through eavesdropping and surveillance devices, as well as the tricks that intruders play, using the Internet, to obtain other people’s private information. If we interpret the term “loins” (i.e., “awrah” in Arabic) in the Islamic texts to include everything that a person does not wish to inform people about, then the process of intrusion or spying on people’s information using modern technology will fall under the same rule, which is forbidding access to information without the permission of its owners. Obtaining pictures of others or information related to their health, social, or financial condition falls under the umbrella of “awrah,” which is forbidden from view by others. Causing harm to others without a legal justification is prohibited in Islamic law. Since accessing other people’s private information causes them physical or psychological harm, it is considered a violation of said Islamic Law.

Chapter 4

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY 4.1. HISTORY OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS Many researchers trace the history of copyright to the invention of printing in Europe in the fifteenth century, as the emergence of printing presses encouraged owners to print manuscripts and books without regard for the rights of their authors. This led the authors to demand laws that protect their intellectual rights from any infringements. The copyright protection law promulgated by Queen Anne in England in 1710 can be considered the oldest law for the protection of intellectual property, in the modern sense. This law recognized the individual right of the author on his work after publication, as well as his right to object to the reproduction of his works without his permission. This law also emphasized the importance of limiting the duration of copyright protection of the author on his work. France is also one of the first countries to realize the importance of intellectual property and was quick to pass laws that protect copyright. Therefore, France witnessed several legislations aimed at developing the concept of intellectual property. The most important of such was the six decrees issued by King Louis XVI in 1777. These decrees recognized the intellectual property of the author as one of the most important private

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properties, because it is the fruit of the author’s mind and intellect. The decrees also recognized the author’s right to publish and sell his work.

(Source: slideplayer.com) Figure 4-1. Photocopier invention and first commercial photocopier.

It was the United States turn next, as the US Congress passed a law for the protection of intellectual property, which was ratified by US President George Washington in 1790. This law stipulated the prohibition of printing, reprinting, or publishing books, maps and drawings without the permission of their owners. This law also specified a limit on protection period of up to 28 years. This law did not have much impact because of the difficulty in monitoring the intellectual property and their high cost during that period. However, the importance of this law began to become clearer after the invention of the photocopying machine, by Chester Carlson in 1938 (Figure 4-1). Even though these machines revolutionized the publishing world, they did not pose a major threat to the copyright of the authors, because the cost of copying the pages of a book, at that time, was close to the cost of the original book. However in the early 1960’s, with the development of photocopying machines and the decrease in their price, the cost of the copying process dropped and copying became accessible to all, which gave an increasing importance to the application of intellectual privacy laws.

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At its beginning, the laws for intellectual rights were limited to protecting books. They were later extended to the rest of intellectual products, including paintings, sculptures, music, and photos, in the given order. In 1976, an important amendment was made to the American Intellectual Property Protection Act, which expanded the protection to include all works that are expressed in words, numbers, or voices, regardless of the type of materials these works are stored on. With this broad definition of intellectual property, software was introduced among work that is protected by the Intellectual Property Protection Law. The law, on the other hand, relaxed the prohibition of copying books by allowing copies of parts of the book, but not all of its contents. France, England, and the United States were among the first countries to take interest in, and pass laws protecting intellectual rights of the authors. This interest later passed on to the rest of Europe following increased pressure from authors and publishers to provide protection for their books. This resulted in the establishment of the International Literary and Artistic Association (ALAI) in Paris in 1878, with the intention of protecting the rights of authors. ALAI is credited with mediating the Berne Convention agreement for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works in 1886, which is the oldest international multilateral agreement to protect copyright. The post-World War II period witnessed intense efforts to expand the scope of intellectual protection into an international law, and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) was entrusted with the task of preparing a draft global agreement for the protection of copyright. This project, which was adopted by the Intergovernmental Copyright Conference held in 1952, became an internationally recognized agreement. Among the most important provisions in this agreement was the commitment of every signing country to guarantee adequate and effective rights for copyright. In addition, the agreement specified the period of copyright protection for copyright to span the life of the author plus twentyfive years following his or her death. The agreement also protected the financial interests of the author, including his sole right to license the copying of his work by any means.

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As for the Arabian countries, they have not recognized any laws to protect intellectual property until recently. The first law to protect intellectual property known to the Arab world was the Ottoman Copyright Law of 1910. Whereas, Morocco was the first Arab country to issue a law to protect literary and artistic works in 1916. It was followed by Lebanon, which issued a law to protect the author in 1924. The entire first half of the twentieth century did not witness any legislation for copyright protection amongst Arabian countries, other than these three laws. At the beginning of the second half of the twentieth century, interest in the laws of intellectual property protection began to increase in the Arabian countries. Consequently, similar laws were issued in Tunisia in 1966, in Libya in 1968, in Iraq in 1970, in Algeria in 1973, and in Sudan in 1974. The rest of the Arab world followed suit in later years. Until 1998, intellectual property rights for software were included with the rest of intellectual rights within the framework of one law. However, later that year the first law on the protection of digital intellectual property (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) was issued in the United States of America. This law covered all forms of digital property, such as pictures, music recordings, and movies stored on CDs (i.e., removable medium). However, the major part of this law was devoted to combating software piracy.

4.2. SOFTWARE PIRACY AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY The ethics of unauthorized use of software is equivalent to the ethics of unauthorized use of intellectual and literary works. In other words, the discussion about the ethics of using software without a license should be based of the believing in the author’s right on his intellectual work. The discussion should also cover whether or not software has any special aspects that differ from the rest of the works that fall under the heading of intellectual protection.

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The following subsections will present the Islamic perspective on intellectual property rights and whether Islam acknowledges the existence of such rights for the individual.

4.2.1. Islamic View on Intellectual Copyright When discussing the Islamic view on copyright, one might think that there is only a single view on the subject, but reality is that there is a difference between Muslim scholars on this issue. There are those who acknowledge the existence of ownership of the author on his work, and according to this opinion others are not entitled to enact on or benefit from the work without the permission of its owner. While there are others who do not recognize intellectual property among the rights sponsored by any legislations of Islam. This disagreement is really about the concept of “right” and the extent to which it applies to the ideas and innovations produced by an author. It should be noted that none of the early jurists or scholars tackled this topic because it is one of the new issues. This basically means that modern jurists and scholars had to infer the position on intellectual property from the available authentic Islamic verses and texts. Due to the lack of explicit religious verses and texts in this field, opinions on the subject were divided into two. The two subsections below present the two views of Islamic jurists and scholars on intellectual property.

4.2.1.1. Position Supporting Intellectual Property Advocates of this position say that it is the right of the author to receive compensation for his intellectual production, and that no one is allowed to enact on it without the permission of its owner. This position is based on several arguments. Among these arguments is the doctrinal judgment which says that it is permissible to receive compensation for teaching the Noble Quran or the Prophet’s Hadith, which is what the learner benefits from. Therefore, and based on the analogy, it is permissible for the author to receive compensation for the benefit others get from his work. Defenders of intellectual copyright argue that there are a number of Prophet’s Hadiths that

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call for attributing knowledge to its author, and that it is not permissible to quote from the works of others without mentioning the source, as this is considered fraud and lying. There is another argument on which this position is based, which supports the author’s specialization or competence in his field. This argument basically says that something is valuable, in the Sharia, if it can be benefited from, regardless of whether it is materialistic or not. Since the ideas or contents included in a book, audio, video, maps or other intellectual and literary work are a kind of a benefit to those who want to benefit from them, they are thus valuable. Furthermore, since this value is the property of its owner, it is the right of the owner to receive compensation in exchange for such benefit. There are some Islamic Sharia jurists and scholars who consider that the intellectual right of the author is the right of ownership, based on the fact that the right of ownership is not limited to materialistic or physical object. Ownership rather includes the specialization or competence of the author, because specialization or competence is analogous to materialistic or physical object when the nature of the object cannot be physically possessed. Examples of this are debts; as the mere fact that they not materialistic or physical objects does not nullify the right of the creditor. Possession, then, should be judged according to the item being considered. Advocates of this position also consider that the intellectual property right is a right that can be waived in return for compensation. The European Council for Fatwa and Research issued a decision that considers trade name, trademark, authorship, invention, and program making have legally approved financial values, and that it is the right of their owners to be able to sell or rent them. The decision also asserts that the responsibility of the software buyers to adhere to the conditions set by the owner of these programs, and accordingly no one may reproduce these programs without the permission of their owners. It is clear that defenders of intellectual property rights have difficulty in supporting their position from a Sharia point of view. Once they see it as a benefit that their providers are entitled to, and another time they consider it as part of a set of moral rights legislated by Islam. However, one can defend

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intellectual property rights by stating that regardless of the heading under which intellectual copyright is listed, it is clear injustice that the author does not benefit from his work. After all, he was the one who spent great effort and ample time in order for his work to see the light. It would be unfair if instead of him benefiting from the fruit of this effort, the fruit is looted by others without any effort or hassle. Since Islam does not accept injustice or unfairness, it is difficult to believe that it endorses such a situation, which will discourage the morale of creators and deter them from innovation.

4.2.1.2. Position Opposing Intellectual Property Advocates of this position refuse to acknowledge the existence of the right to own ideas in Islamic law, as there is no available authentic verses or texts in the Islamic Sharia indicating such right. They object to those who say that copying books and software is considered a forbidden theft in Islamic law by saying that the prohibition of theft is for what belongs to the person, which has not proven to start with. Thus, according to them, one needs to prove that literary and artistic work belongs to the author in order to then infer that infringement on such matter is considered theft The opponents of the existence of the intellectual property right object to the argument of the supporters that try to establish this right based on legal texts calling for an attributing knowledge to its author. They respond to this argument by saying is necessary to differentiate between attributing knowledge to its author and that the author has the right to financial benefit from the knowledge. It is however agreed that the knowledge should not be attributed to other than its author, as that is considered forbidden lying. The dispute over the issue of intellectual property is about the personal ownership condition being satisfied when it comes to ideas and inventions. Sheikh Zaki Badawi, a prominent Islamic scholar, explains the viewpoint of opponents of copyright in intellectual property by saying that the early jurists or scholars did not tackle this issue, as their concern was focused on materialistic or physical thefts, the rule for which came in verse 38 of Surat Al-Ma’idah, “The thief, the male and the female, amputate their hands in recompense for what they committed as a deterrent [punishment] from Allah, and Allah is Exalted in Might and Wise.” Sheikh Badawi

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continues to say that the juristic definition of theft does not apply to literary theft, because the definition stipulates that the thief surreptitiously seize the property of others with the intent to own them. But intellectual and scientific materials are not placed in custody, and they are not taken stealthily, as theft occurs openly. Sheikh Badawi continues to say that taking advantage of a specific idea contained in a sermon or verses from a poem is familiar and common in Islamic history, as scholars were quoting from the writings of others without mentioning the source. As the early jurists or scholars considered knowledge a public matter, that they even determined that it is not necessary to pay compensation for the teacher of the Quran, for example. The advocates opposing the recognition of the author’s copyright stand firmly by their belief based on the silence of the authentic Islamic verses and texts on such right. Therefore, they argue that there is no established text or provision for this type of ownership. Also, equating the intellectual property right to the absolute rights recognized and legislated by Islam is sort of artificial. Therefore, they consider the ideas contained in literary and artistic works to be public. The acknowledgment of the copyright of the property over the ideas means that it is not permissible to cite verses or sermons without permission from the owners, which isn’t the standard in Islamic history. Since the principle is the same, the basis is that intellectual products are not owned by anyone, not even their author, but rather they are considered among the things that everyone is allowed to benefit from.

4.3. ETHICAL ISSUES RELATED TO SOFTWARE PIRACY There are many ethical questions that have resulted from the emergence of computers in our lives that require answers due to their impact on society. Among these questions are those about the ethicality of copying computer software and downloading files on the Internet without obtaining approval from their owners of these programs or files. These ethical questions also include the controversial debate on whether such copying and downloading process is considered theft in its traditional sense or not.

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Before answering such questions directly, it is necessary to recognize the great impact of software piracy on the economies of countries and societies. The latest statistics on software piracy show that the percentage of pirated software worldwide in 2017 has reached 37%, which causes huge losses for companies producing this software, which in some estimates reach over $46 billion annually. This is in addition to the loss of hundreds of thousands of job opportunities that can be provided to those who want to work in this sector of trade or industry. One of the funny stories, that show the extent of spread of unlicensed software, reports that one of the inspectors for Microsoft discovered unlicensed software on a computer at a police department responsible for business software piracy in one of the US states. The discussion about the ethicality of software piracy is one of the new issues in the computing field, but it is also related to an old issue that deals with the intellectual property rights of the author. This is also related to the discussion on whether the concept of ownership in its traditional sense, which was limited to tangible materials, can be expanded to include ideas and other non-material intellectual products such as software, sound recordings, scientific theories, and technological inventions. Thus, the issue of software piracy, in terms of being a form of infringement on intellectual property rights, should be discussed from several economic, social and ethical aspects. This will be addressed in this chapter with a focus on the ethicality of the issue from both the western as well as the Islamic perspectives.

4.3.1. Method for Software Piracy Most likely, the emergence of the problem of software piracy began with the advent of personal computers in 1982, as the rapid and wide spread of these affordable computing devices encouraged software companies to develop different programs that suit all segments of society. This in turn encouraged individuals to try to obtain such programs in a convenient and affordable manner, which was facilitated by the availability of specialized devices that are capable of making copies of these programs quickly and

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cheaply. This problem was further aggravated by the strong entry of the Internet into the computing world. The Internet started in 1981 as a communication project between four American universities to serve academic purposes. The emergence of the Internet service has constituted a huge qualitative shift in communication between people and in the possibility of providing many services, including software, over this network. The Internet as a service quickly became the focus of attention of individuals and businesses alike. In 1990, the first Internet service provider facilitated to its customers the access to the company’s information network via phone lines. Within two years the number of computers connected to the Internet reached a million devices. In 2019, the number of Internet users reached over 4.5 billion users worldwide, an enormous 1,156% growth from 2000, which recorded about 361 million users in the world. This rapid increase in the number of computers users has created a new reality in software marketing, and consequently made the process of protecting software from electronic theft more difficult (Table 41). Table 4-1. World internet usage and population statistics World Regions

Population (2019 Est.)

Africa 1,320,038,716 Asia 4,241,972,790 Europe 829,173,007 Latin 658,345,826 America/ Caribbean Middle East 258,356,867 North America 366,496,802 Oceania/ 41,839,201 Australia WORLD 7,716,223,209 TOTAL (Source: internetworldstats.com)

39.60% 54.20% 87.70% 68.90%

Growth % (20002019) 11481% 1913% 592% 2411%

% Users to World Users 11.50% 50.70% 16.00% 10.00%

175,502,589 327,568,628 28,636,278

67.90% 89.40% 68.40%

5243% 203% 276%

3.90% 7.20% 0.60%

4,536,248,808

58.80%

1157%

100.00 %

Population % of World

Internet Users (June 2019)

Population % Use Internet

17.10% 55.00% 10.70% 8.50%

522,809,480 2,300,469,859 727,559,682 453,702,292

3.30% 4.70% 0.50% 100.00%

Software piracy generally refers to every process that a person or organization undertakes to obtain software without the permission of its original owner, thus the owner does not receive any compensation in return.

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Even though there are many methods of obtaining software illegally, these methods can be classified into the following to five main categories: 1. Multiple use of license: When a person purchases a specific program, this purchase includes a license to use this program by this person alone and does not include the right to allow others to benefit from this program. When this person gives the program to one of friends or colleagues to use on their computer, this is considered a violation of the ownership rights of this program, because the license of the program limits the use of the program to the buyer only. 2. Installation on hard drive: Due to intense competition in the computer market, many computer trading companies resort to installing copies of software programs on the devices that they sell to their customers. They do this mainly to save the price for purchasing the original software, which in turn reduces the cost of the computer and attracts potential customers. 3. Software rental: This method of using the software illegally is perpetrated when the owner of the original program leases this program to another person for a specified period. This type of leasing is of course illegal, because the intellectual property law in most countries stipulates that the use of this software should be personal and cannot be extended it to others. 4. Download of online files: This method is the latest and easiest way to obtain unlicensed software. Software, movies, and songs are downloaded from sites that offer these materials in an unauthorized manner. There are many websites on the internet that provide software registration or activation keys that enable the use of the software without having to buy it. 5. Copying of software: This is the most common method in the world for software piracy, where an exact replica of the original program (or clone) is often

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4.3.2. Factors Affecting Software Piracy Several studies were conducted to determine the factors that influence the decision of a person to obtain unlicensed software, in order to put in place the obstacles necessary to prevent such actions. The joint study conducted by Christensen and Eining has shown that there are five factors that affect a person who makes unauthorized copying of software or recordings. These factors are: 1. Social perception of software piracy: A person is usually affected by the prevailing opinions in the society in which he lives, and public opinion plays an important role in the ethical decisions that the individual makes in similar situations. Therefore, the more receptive the society is to the copying process, the more this will factor into the spread of this phenomenon. 2. Monetary value that a person will save as a result of the copying process: When deciding to obtain unlicensed software, a person must consider the financial value that he will save by this action. Thus, the considerable difference between the cost of the original program and the copying process makes the motivation for doing the copying significant. 3. Ethical values the person believes in: The ethical values that one believes in play a major role in the decision-making process to obtain pirated software. The stronger the ethical values of a person, the more this will help him avoid software piracy. 4. The legal repercussions for doing this act: It goes without saying that a person who wants to obtain software illegally will take into account the legal consequences of this act.

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The absence of a law to protect property in the society in which a person lives will be a factor that encourages him to obtain unlicensed software. Statistics on software piracy have shown that this process is widespread in countries where there are no laws to protect intellectual property rights. 5. Personal factors: Some studies show that the factors of sex and age play an important role in a person’s decision. General studies reveal that women and the elderly are more ethical in their behavior than men or young people. And specific studies on the software piracy indicate that this phenomenon is very widespread among young people who are in the prime of life.

4.3.3. Economic Impact of Software Piracy According to one of the institutions concerned with the software industry, software piracy is considered the most serious software problem. As mentioned before, it is estimated at over $46 billion in 2017. This constitutes about 11% of the total software trade of $426 billion. To present the extent of the unlicensed software in the world, it is sufficient to learn that there is forensic evidence of unlicensed software use in 194 of the world’s 195 countries, with North Korea being the only country with no piracy data. In addition, statistics show that the pirated software sales in 25 countries exceed the original software sales in these countries. Studies in 2018 also show continued high rates of unlicensed software use in legally-inclined organizations, including: top schools and universities, top corporations, and even top software companies (Figure 4-2). Even though that the trade in unlicensed software is spread all over the world, the percentage of this spread varies from one region to another. In addition to the severe economic effects that harm the information technology sector, software piracy will deter the developers of this software to continue in this line of business because of the heavy losses they incur due to the unlicensed use of their products.

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Perhaps this is most evident in the inverse relationship between the countries where software piracy is widespread and those in which this software is developed. The countries with the least percentage of pirated software are the countries that produce this software. Furthermore, the percentage of software development is deficient in the countries where software piracy is widespread. In addition, the pirated software trade is closely related to the economic situation of the individual in the countries where this trade is prevalent. A noteworthy observation is that the prevalence of pirated software in India, which is one of the software producing countries, reached 56%, and it came in the 4th rank in the list of the worst 20 countries where pirated software is spread (Figure 4-3). The Middle East is one of the regions where pirated software trade is widespread, and the value of losses resulting from pirated software is estimated at $3.8 billion in 2017. It should be mentioned however even though that spread of unlicensed software is high in the Middle East, the United Arab Emirates is unique in being the only Middle Eastern country with low rate of unlicensed software of only 32%. This is primarily due to the strict measures taken by the UAE in applying the intellectual property protection law to prevent the spread of this software. Other Gulf countries are also beginning to implement some measures to reduce the phenomenon software piracy (Table 4-2).

(Source: revulytics.com) Figure 4-2. High rates of unlicensed software use.

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(Source: revulytics.com) Figure 4-3. Top 20 software license misuse and piracy hotspots.

Table 4-2. Rates and value of unlicensed software in Middle East and Africa

(Source: BSA Global Software Survey - bsa.org)

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Statistics on the spread of copied software generally show that more than half of the countries have more than 60% of unlicensed software, and the spread of pirated software has major economic implications on software developing companies in particular, and on the economies of countries that these companies belong to in general. A study conducted in 2003 showed that reducing the chance of pirated software by 1% for a period of four years could provide one million job opportunities and financial returns to the global economy amounting to 400 million dollars. Even though all countries are negatively affected by the spread of pirated software, the magnitude of this effect varies from place to place. The statistics for the of the commercial value of unlicensed software show that that North America and Western Europe are the most affected by virtue of having the largest share in the production of software worldwide. Even though software piracy by copying is the main and preferred method for many computer users to obtain unlicensed software, this does not mean that it is the only form of software piracy in the software world. The software companies that offer their programs through their websites on the Internet have created another way to obtain unlicensed this software by downloading them from these sites and storing them on personal computers. There are many other forms of infringement on software, including the use of shareware programs that are intended to be tried for a fixed period of time and the hacking of security barriers at sites that sell software in order to obtain them for free. In addition, some of websites specialize in offering software with activation keys; such sites that are called crack sites and are very popular among Internet users.

4.3.4. Software Piracy Monitoring Organizations The information technology sector in the Arab world is witnessing major and comprehensive developments due to the availability of all factors and basic requirements for it, which include outstanding human competencies and high-quality infrastructure. The campaigns to protect intellectual

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property rights constitute a major incentive to drive innovation among developers and programmers in this sector. Business Software Alliance (BSA) is an organization that is active in launching several initiatives and organizing events aimed at protecting intellectual property rights. BSA also calls on the specialized authorities in the region to take serious steps to create a favorable atmosphere for the software developers’ sector and websites in order to protect their rights, interests, and to stop the migration of Arab human resources to the developed countries. Such professionals will be able to demonstrate their capabilities and talents in an environment that preserves their intellectual rights. Specialized governmental agencies in the Arab region are making great efforts at all levels to combat piracy in all its forms. The formation of associations specializing in this field is considered one of the most effective methods to combat piracy. These associations cooperate with the member companies, coordinate with governments, and establish awareness education and training programs for competent cadres in government agencies that are responsible for applying intellectual property laws. Such specialized organizations should also be able to achieve positive results in promoting public awareness of the importance of using original programs and the impact of piracy on the economy as a whole. These positive results would not be possible without the awareness of the governments around the importance of protecting intellectual property rights of software developers, which leads to attracting huge foreign investment and advancing economic and social growth. Campaigns to combat piracy of programs launched by countries constitute an incentive for developers and innovators in the field of software. This contributes to the inclusion of these countries in the contemporary economic system, which considers a safe and stable environment one of its most important requirements. The rate of software piracy is one of the primary measures of economic stability and a secure digital environment. Arab countries must coordinate their legislation regarding the applicable laws in the field of intellectual property. Legislations of Arab countries contain legal rules that contribute to strengthening the protection of

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intellectual rights. The disparity between Arab countries lies in the application of severe penalties that deter piracy offenders. Microsoft is a member of Business Software Alliance (BSA) and is one of the companies that incur heavy losses due to piracy. In addition to Microsoft, there are a large number of international companies who are members of BSA, and many Arab companies from most of the countries in the region joined the association. BSA is dedicated to protecting the intellectual property rights of these member companies and the software sector in general, but the association is not directly concerned with individual piracy cases. BSA calls on all Arab companies to become members of the association to help reduce piracy and protect intellectual property rights. BSA relies on an independent annual study conducted by International Data Corporation, one of the world’s leading institutions in market forecasting research in the field of information technology, which uses advanced scientific and computational method that takes into account several aspects related to the calculation and prediction of privacy statistics. The Business Software Alliance (BSA) also launches several initiatives to provide affordable software prices for students, schools, universities, companies, and community members. BSA also coordinates with its member companies to reach affordable software purchase prices. BSA also sponsors campaigns to protect intellectual property rights in regional countries, which acts as an incentive for creativity for software developers. A large part of the revenue produced by software sales is in turn reinvested in research and development in order to update this software and develop advanced software, which helps the overall information technology sector. In addition to Business Software Alliance (BSA), there other global organizations that are also concerned with and monitor software piracy. The list of these organizations includes but not limited to: • • •

Software and Information Industry Association World Intellectual Property Organization Federation Against Software Theft

Chapter 5

GLOBALIZATION 5.1. COMPUTERS AND GLOBALIZATION If one wanted to learn about the amount of influence that computers have had on everyday life, there is no better example than globalization. Globalization is a social, economic, political and cultural phenomenon that would not have crystallized had it not been for the tremendous technological development; chief of which is the advancements in the field of computers. The Internet represents a symbol of this phenomenon in its clearest form, as it consists of millions of local networks that no one in the world can control. The Internet is an ideal environment for anyone who wants to present his products, ideas, beliefs or information without any external restrictions. Therefore, the Internet is the ideal model of the globalization phenomenon. This globalization is what basically made the world a single commercial market. As Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, said that the Internet will turn into a paradise for shoppers, where the buyer can buy all the products and services via the Internet while he is sitting at home. In the internet, the barrier of time and space is broken through the immediate transmission of information in a universe of virtual spaces. Electronic commerce (e-commerce) addressed the two largest barriers to accessing global product markets by reducing the distances and the cost of transportation Electronic commerce allows even small companies to market

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their products and services all over the world without having to pay huge amounts of money to rent sites in one of the luxury market complexes. This resulted in an increase in the working hours in the United States during the period from 1995-1999 by about 2.5% annually, which is about twice the average increase in work hours during the past 25 years. Two-thirds of this increase is due to the developments in information technology. Currently, ecommerce poses a real threat to national retail stores, as many local retailers find it difficult to compete with virtual stores. To demonstrate this new trend in shopping, electronic purchases using credit cards during the 1990’s increased by 30% from their previous numbers. Figure 5-1 shows the most preferred payment type for consumers in the United States. There is no doubt that globalization is the most important social and economic phenomenon in this generation because of its drastic effects in various aspects of human life. With every passing day, trading, technology and advanced information networks are breaking geographical distance barrier and the world is transformed into a small village whose inhabitants know each other. The globalization phenomenon has received attention from both researchers and the general public. The great interest in understanding and analyzing the phenomenon of globalization can be realized by recognizing the steady increase in the publications dealing with this phenomenon. If globalization, as a phenomenon, has become a reality and an undeniable fact, it raises many important questions about its impact on individuals, including: • • • •

What is the fate of the regional state in the era of globalization? What is the impact of this globalization on different cultures? What will the global economy look like in light of this new reality? Has globalization reduced or increased the problem of poverty, unemployment, pollution, crime and terrorism in the world?

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(Source: tsys.com) Figure 5-1. U.S. Most Preferred Payment Type.

5.1.1. The Concept of Globalization Despite the continuous use of the term globalization, it is very difficult to find an agreed upon definition for this phenomenon. This term is used in multiple areas and to express multiple intellectual visions; therefore, it is difficult to establish a fixed framework for the concept of globalization. As a result of the different perspectives from which globalization can be viewed, there are multiple definitions of the concept of globalization. However, all of these definitions agree on general characteristics for the phenomenon of globalization. The most prominent of these characteristics is the opening of markets, the freedom of movement of goods, and the freedom of transfer of information. Among the many definitions that have been developed for globalization is the definition of Roland Robertson, which considers globalization as historical trend towards compression and the increasing awareness of individuals and societies of this compression. Globalization, as Robertson

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sees it, is not just a compression in time and space. Rather, the most important thing is the awareness that this compression is beneficial for the world. The idea of convergence in distances is also established in another definition of globalization by Malcom Waters, the author of the book “Globalization”. Globalization, according to Waters, refers to all innovations and developments that seek, intentionally or unintentionally, to integrate the world’s population into one global society (Figure 5-2). Consequently, in the age of globalization, economic or cultural activities are not directed towards a specific economic or cultural environment, but rather towards all the societies in the world. Although there are numerous definitions for globalization, most of these definitions can be combined in five types of definitions, each of which will be discussed under a separate subsection below: • • • • •

The International Perspective The Perspective of Removing Restrictions The Universal Perspective The Perspective of Westernization The Perspective of Overcoming Geography

5.1.1.1. Globalization in the International Perspective Globalization in this sense describes the interrelationships across the borders of countries, especially neighboring countries. It transforms the economy of every country to form part of the global economic system in which individuals, products, and money move seamlessly. This global trade is the ideal model for globalization. In contrast, the general view of globalization perceives globalization as an increase in cooperation between countries to achieve common interests. Therefore, this definition focuses on bilateral or collective relations, and not a network of integrated relations.

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(Source: theblueoceansgroup.com) Figure 5-2. Globalization Seeks to Integrate World Population into One Society.

5.1.1.2. Globalization in the Perspective of Removing Restrictions Globalization in this perspective signifies the demand of governments to lift the restrictions imposed on the movement of trade. It is a call to a global economy with no borders, where legal, administrative, and political obstacles to the movement of capital and individuals are removed. Privatization and freedom of trade are regarded as the means to achieve the luxury and prosperity for societies. Advocates of anti-globalization oppose this approach because, in their opinion, this policy of openness will exacerbate the problems of poverty, inequality, clash of civilizations, and the destruction of the environment. 5.1.1.3. Globalization in the Universal Perspective Globalization by this definition means more than just an economic phenomenon to open the markets. It is a comprehensive phenomenon that aims to facilitate the transfer of all products, which includes electrical tools, foods, books, magazines, and everything that a person wants in life. Advocates of this definition believe in the possibility of a universal vision that can prevail in the world in order to create one global society. It is possible, according to this view, to aspire to a world in which there is a single

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ethical, cultural and social vision throughout the whole world, and thus the elements of aggravation that cause conflicts between countries will vanish.

5.1.1.4. Globalization in the Perspective of Westernization By this definition, globalization carries the meaning of trying to find cultural opportunities for a certain society or nation over the rest of societies by portraying certain cultural values as the cause of progress and advancement. This understanding of globalization invites anti-globalization advocates to describe globalization as a phenomenon of “westernization” of the world. Those who view globalization as a manifestation of westernization or Americanization consider it merely an extension of the imperialist policy practiced by the Great Powers, during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, to supersede weak states. 5.1.1.5. Globalization in the Sense of Overcoming Geography This definition takes into consideration all the political, social, cultural and economic aspects of globalization. In light of advanced technology, the importance of geographical area is diminished. This is because the spatial dimension of technology makes the world look like a small village. In this definition, the world is not seen as separate parts that are grouped together. Rather, everything in the world is seen as indicating one geographical and social unity.

5.2. THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF GLOBALIZATION There is a consensus among researchers in the phenomenon of globalization that the term globalization emerged in the nineties of the twentieth century. Oxford dictionary referred to the term globalization for the first time in 1991. The word “global” appeared in the American dictionary for the first time in 1960, but it did not have the same meaning as the word “globalization” that is used today. Globalization, in the sense of opening borders and markets is a very old term. If we consider that globalization is not new, but rather a natural phenomenon for the integration

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of societies, then the manifestations of globalization we are witnessing in our present age are completely different than those in previous periods. The concept of globalization is related to the idea of opening foreign markets to export of products and import of raw materials. Globalization in this sense is associated with the idea of the external control of powerful countries over the weak one. Therefore, the modern history of the globalization phenomenon is linked to the imperial era that extended from the mid-nineteenth century to the first half of the twentieth century. During this period, the great powers occupied the weaker states that constituted the main source for the raw commodities they needed. The second stage in modern globalization is referred to as the stage of imperialism, which appeared in the1970’s. Among the most prominent reasons for this stage was the emergence of strong competitors to the American companies in the United States itself. Japanese companies, for example, entered the American market and achieved great success. This was especially true in the auto and electronics industries, which were previously monopolized by American companies. The changes in the political situation in the world, as a result of the end of the cold war between the western and the eastern camps, helped the United States of America to adopt the option of globalization and push strongly towards its generalization.

5.3. ECONOMIC GLOBALIZATION AND VIRTUAL SOCIETIES Globalization began primarily as an economic concept before this concept expanded to include culture, politics and the rest of human activities. When the concept of globalization is mentioned, the first thing that comes to mind is economic globalization. What makes economic globalization more prominent than other aspects of globalization is that it can be measured quantitatively. Economic globalization suggests that the world has become a single global market without economic limits. This economy is governed by common global foundations, and these markets, as Malcom Waters says, are

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outside the control of all the countries in the world, including the largest and most wealthy. Due to the close interdependence between the different economies and the effect they have on each other, what happens in any region of the world will have a clear impact on the rest of the regions. This was evident in the collapse of stock exchanges in East Asian countries that occurred several years ago that had a profound impact on the entire global economy, which was almost paralyzed as a result. The main idea in the concept of economic globalization is to give freedom to the movement of capital, investments, and resources by opening the local markets to the smooth transfer of goods without obstacles or complications. Technological innovations have greatly facilitated the movement of capital, which resulted in the emergence of a global stock market operating without interruption. The Wall Street Journal has estimated that about $150 billion is transferred every day around the world. In the cyber economy, money is converted into mere numbers that are transferred between computer networks. Joel Kurtzman says in his book “The Death of Money” that every week, global annual production passes through the network in New York. Kurtzman continues to say that the new abstract form of money is nothing more than a compilation of the zeros and ones, like what happens in the computer’s central processing unit (CPU). In light of the electronic economy, automated teller machines (ATMs), credit cards and digital money are reshaping the world of money. The world is witnessing the spread of new forms of electronic money such as electronic cash systems and cryptocurrencies. This fundamental shift in the concept of money imposed the emergence of the soft banking concept, which is a 24hour facility that provides electronic banking operations, such as withdrawing and depositing funds, paying bills, cashing checks, loan applications, account and balance statements, as well as other traditional banking services. Globalization based on electronic commerce resulted in changing the concept of ownership from physical acquisition of a commodity to the digital acquisition. The British Encyclopedia Britannica is a good example of the circumstances in which trading accelerates the transformation of traditional goods and commodities into pure services. Until recently, the cost of the

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hardcopy printed edition of the encyclopedia (32 volumes) costed $1,600. In the early nineties, Bill Gates, CEO of Microsoft, discussed, with the officials of the company that produced the British Encyclopedia, the idea of issuing a digital copy of the encyclopedia (in the form of CDs), so that it can be marketed at a much cheaper retail price. However, British Encyclopedia Company rejected the idea because they feared the impact of this on their printed copy. Gates then decided to create a digital encyclopedia named Encarta. The electronic version of the new Encarta encyclopedia was recorded on CD-ROM and was sold at $95 and $49 per copy. British Encyclopedia then had to respond, because it was losing market share very quickly. Their response was to put their version of encyclopedia on the internet, and even took a step further by providing free access to its entire database. The company’s revenues came from the advertising companies that place their ads on the encyclopedia website. Thus, the material form of the British Encyclopedia was turned into a pure service. Books are not the only products in which the material form was forced out and was converted into an electronic service in the new cyber economy. The same process spread across various business arenas. For example, instead of keeping home phone answering machines, major phone companies are providing their customers with the ability to manipulate and access voice messages from anywhere.

5.3.1. Virtual Societies and “Transnational Companies” Transnational companies are the main participant in the globalization economy. These companies do not have a specific country or nationality. They are not subject to the policies of any country, and work beyond traditional barriers. They enjoy high flexibility, as its administrative headquarter may be in a country, its marketing in a second, its manufacturing headquarter in a third, and its advertising headquarter in a fourth country. It can be said that 60,000 companies in the world, which are transnational companies and their more than 500,000 branches, are the ones that control the global economy. In recent years, the number of branches of

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transnational companies has more than doubled. The number of these branches has increased from 200,000 branches in 1994 to more than half a million branches in 1998. During the same period, sales of the external branches increased from $6.6 trillion in 1994 to $11.4 trillion in 1998, as compared to 7 billion dollars of total world exports in 1998. In 1997, the total foreign assets of the largest 100 transnational companies amounted to $1.8 trillion, which constituted 15% of the foreign assets of transnational companies. Transnational companies possess massive capabilities and resources to the extent that one of them may outperform the resources of a group of countries. The wealth of these companies exceeds $20 trillion, or more than 80% of the global gross national product, and accounts for about 85% of total world trade. These companies have achieved foreign sales worth 1 to 2 trillion dollars, and they employ approximately 6 million people in their overseas branches. With its vast financial and technical capabilities, transnational corporations employ these capabilities in marketing their products. According to Ronald Collins, of the Columbia Journalism Review, every day 12 billion printed ads, 2.5 million radio ads, and more than 300,000 TV commercials are in circulation, all of which are stored in the consciousness of the members of the society. The average American is now exposed to more than 3,500 advertising messages per day, which is twice the number 30 years ago. Companies in the United States of America alone spend on advertisement more than $555 annually for each individual living in the country. The spending on advertising worldwide is expected to surpass $560 billion in 2019. As for advertising via the Internet, the field continues to grow and achieve great returns. In the United States alone, Internet advertising revenue in 2018 totaled $107.5 billion as compared to $7.3 billion in 2003, an astronomical 1,472% increase. Figure 5-3 shows a comparison of the total internet advertising revenues from desktop versus mobile over the period from 2012 to 2018. In addition to the prominent role of transnational companies in the globalization phenomenon, international financial organizations, such as the World Bank and the World Trade Organization (WTO), play an important

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role in setting their own standards for global trading. The World Bank, for example, using its assistance and loans that amounted to over $42 billion dollars in 2015 for more than 100 countries is able to impose its conditions and standards on these countries. Among these conditions is the liberalization of legislations related to telecommunications, on the grounds that media marketing is the most effective way to encourage development. These organizations have become a factor of pressure on their clients, as they punish countries that refrain from opening their markets by depriving them of many facilities. Many see these organizations as political instruments in the hands of wealthy countries that want to force the rest of the countries to open their markets so that these rich countries can market their products.

(Source: iab.com) Figure 5-3. Total Internet Advertising Revenues from Desktop vs. Mobile.

5.3.2. Movement of Individuals in Virtual Societies One of the basic demands of globalization is the lifting of restrictions on the movement of individuals, which is the reason for the great growth in the fields which facilitate said movement. Travel for leisure is the third largest family expense, after food and housing. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council in 2018, the travel industry represents more than 10% of the world’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and the contribution of global

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travel and tourism to economic activity has jumped from $1.9 trillion in 1987 to $8.8 trillion in 2018. The travel and tourism industry, in 2018, employed approximately 319 million people around the world, which is equivalent to 10% of the global workforce. This represents an increase of about 100 million jobs in the last ten years. According to United Nations World Tourism Organization, there were 25 million international tourists’ arrivals in 1950. This number increased to 1.4 billion in 2018, a monstrous 5,600% increase. Seven industrial countries combined contribute approximately 30% to world’s tourism (Figure 5-4). The seven industrial countries include: USA, Japan, Germany, UK, Italy, France and Canada

5.3.3. Direct Foreign Investment Before 1980, many developing countries and development economists had great reservations and a sense of insecurity towards foreign investments, as they feared the potential political impact of such investments. However, with the recession that hit the world economy in the 1980s and the subsequent lack of assistance provided by rich countries to developing countries, the positive outlook towards foreign investment was strengthened. In the 1990s, the flow of private capital increased to developing countries, and it became the most prominent source of financing for development in these countries. This flow of private capital replaced the development assistance and loans provided by other countries and international financial organizations such as the World Bank. In 1999, global foreign direct investment flows were $80 billion and grew to $1.3 trillion in 2018. Despite the overall increase in global investment, the share of all the developing countries in this investment was only at 54% in 2018. For example, Africa’s foreign direct investment, in 2018, was only $46 billion, or just 3.5% of global investment. Defenders of globalization are, in good faith, hoping that globalization would lead to an increase in the average income earned per person (also known as per capita income) at the global level, and thus reduce the phenomenon of poverty experienced by many countries of the world. However, facts and figures present a different reality. At the same time the

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per capita income has increased, this increase has been accompanied by a widening of the gap between the level of income in rich countries and the level of income in poor countries. Despite all the benefits that the proponents of globalization preach, the figures reveal a painful reality. In 2015, the number of people who live on less than $1.25 a day (or less than $38 per month) is about 876 million (or 12% of the world’s population of 7.5 billion in 2015), and the numbers are even higher for developing countries. This signifies that the danger of poverty still looms on many countries in the world.

(Source: wttc.org) Figure 5-4. Travel & Tourism Regional Performance in 2018.

Bruce Scott, a university professor in business administration, suggests two reasons for the divergence between economic theory and reality. The first reason is that the rich countries still insist on placing obstacles on migration of labor and refuse to import agricultural products from the poor countries. As for the second reason, Scott suggests that poor countries, as a result of mismanagements by their governments, have failed to attract much foreign capital.

5.3.4. Economic Globalization and Poverty Those who support the idea of economic globalization were expecting that the transfer of capital from rich countries to poor countries in search of

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cheap labor, and in return the migration of labor from poor countries to rich countries in search of better financial returns, which would reduce the phenomenon of poverty in the world. The advocates of economic globalization perhaps consider that the criterion for the success of globalization is the possibility of reducing the gap between the rich and the poor. However, for one reason or another, the facts revealed by the figures indicate that this theory has not had any success in practice. This is evidenced by the reports about the global economy, which show all of the growth in the rich countries, which only represent the higher third of the countries. However, poor countries did not witness any economic growth at all. According to World Bank, poor countries received less than 7% of direct investments during the period 1992-1998. Those who have reservations about globalization argue that globalization, contrary to its proponents claim that it alleviates the problem of poverty in the world, instead works to increase the wealth of the rich, and has caused the poor to become poorer. The proof of this is that 80% of the world’s wealth is in the hands of 20% of the world’s population, and the globe’s richest 1% own half the world’s wealth; equations that are undoubtedly flawed (Figure 5-5).

(Source: Credit Suisse Global Wealth Databook 2018 at credit-suisse.com) Figure 5-5. Cumulative Change in Number of Millionaires since 2000.

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How can anyone claim that globalization reduce the problem of poverty if the numbers show that the wealth of the three richest countries in the world exceeds that of one third of the countries in the world combined? For instance, in 1960, 20% of the rich countries of the world possessed 30 times more wealth than 20% of the world’s poorest countries. While in the era of globalization, in 1997, this number reached 74 times as much (as compared to 30 times). The figures confirm the fact that globalization did not increase the well-being of the poor, nor did it protect them from the struggle against poverty. On the contrary, we find that the gap, between the rich and the poor, is vast. As an example, in 2003, there are only 37 televisions per 1,000 people in Africa, as compared to 755 in the United States.

5.3.5. Globalization and Unemployment One of the arguments of supporters of globalization is that it will provide many job opportunities, especially for the destitute poor. Reality, however, depicts that the conditions of employment in the world, at the end of the nineties and the beginning of the twenty-first century, have worsened with the exception of North America, Australia, New Zealand, China and India. In 2019, unemployment rate in South Africa was 29.1%, as compared to 3.5% and 7.5% in the United States and Europe respectively (Figure 5-6). As a result of intense competition between international companies, the struggle for survival that requires reducing the company costs in order to remain competitive has resulted in lay-offs to thousands of employees and pressure to remaining employees to accept lesser wages. A recent report published by the International Labor Organization, shows that more than 130,000 jobs were eliminated in Western European countries due to mergers and acquisition activities that took place between companies. Furthermore, the report predicts that more jobs would be abolished in upcoming years.

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5.4. CULTURAL GLOBALIZATION While it might be valid that the most prominent manifestations of globalization are economic, this does not mean that these economic aspects do not have a cultural dimension. Transnational corporations, most of which are from western countries, also spread the western culture that accompanies the commercial products they sell. McDonalds, Starbucks and Pepsi are just a few of the symbols of the western culture, American culture in particular. The spread of these products throughout the world is an indicator of the western domination of the world and their pursuit to generalize the federal thinking based on materialistic values, which underlies these western countries, foremost of which is the United States. One can imagine the magnitude of the impact of western values on the since the percentage of western transnational companies constitutes 64.8% of the total number of transnational companies in the world. The Internet represents a blatant manifestation of globalization and openness to information, which is directed to the dissemination of ideas to everyone. In the ideal environment of cultural globalization, there is no restriction on publication or expression of opinion. This indicates the extent to which this globalization can affect different cultures. The secret to the spread of western culture in the world is evident by the fact that English content constitutes 57.7% of the total Internet content. By contrast, the percentage of people who speak English as their mother tongue are no more than 2%. Cultural globalization aims to facilitate the exchange of cultures and ideas between different societies in the world. A great deal of this goal has already been achieved. Examples of this include, foreign satellite channels have reached remote rural areas in China, Brazilian songs are common in Tokyo, African films can be watched in Thailand, Shakespeare’s novels are widely distributed in Croatia, and CNN is broadcasting to the United Arab Emirates.

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(Source: countryeconomy.com) Figure 5-6. World Unemployment Rates in 2019.

There is a point of view that considers music, songs and films as neutral means of entertainment and does not carry a cultural dimension, but many researchers question this view. Psychologists say that a person is affected by everything one watches or hears. Therefore, there are no neutral cultural products, but every cultural product carries its producers with it. Also, many societies fear that globalization, as a global phenomenon, will negatively affect local cultures. Therefore, these societies take a conservative position from globalization, and consider that globalization represents a cultural invasion by western countries. In spite of the reluctance shown by many countries towards cultural globalization in an attempt to reduce their impact on the national culture, the developments of means of communication convinced these countries that their attempts will not succeed. North Korea, which is perhaps one of the most conservative countries in terms of culture, realized that it could not resist this sweeping trend, and allowed the broadcast of some foreign satellite channels, after a long period of reluctance. Sooner or later, all countries will find themselves helpless in dealing with cultural globalization,

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and that at the end of it they are forced to accept whatever comes from abroad. Proponents of globalization view cultural globalization in a positive manner as providing the appropriate environment for a person to review various ideas and values in order to select those that he is convinced of. This cross-fertilization between civilizations and cultures helps avoid many of the conflicts that are based on religious and cultural intolerance. On the other hand, opponents of globalization, both commercially and culturally, are apprehensive that the cultural openness is not neutral but rather is biased in direction of the force that possesses the technological capabilities through which it can spread its culture and values. Therefore, the domination of United States on the commercial and media markets means that it wants American values to prevail throughout the entire world. It is for this reason the terms Westernization and Americanization circulate widely. Some consider the term globalization synonymous with the term Americanization. They argue that western cultural penetration in general, and the American in particular, has reached the point that favorite hair styles, wardrobes and food items in the United States are popular all over the world. Therefore, no one would have any difficulty all varieties of American food in all parts of the world, starting from the far end of China and ending with the farthest point in Peru on the continent of South America. A quantitative perspective of cultural globalization is also indicative of the extent of openness and cultural communication that is caused by globalization. The value of cultural products such as films, books, publications, music, television, and radio channels jumped from 95 billion dollars in 1980 to more than 380 billion dollars in 1998, with only 13 countries are benefiting by 80% of these products. Furthermore, the number of viewers of American Hollywood movies, which produces 35% of the total of 3000 films produced per year in the world, is more than 2.6 billion people, which constitute 35% of the world’s population. Television networks are another facet of cultural globalization, which is evident by the increase in the number of people who own TVs. In 1985, the number of televisions that people owned was 113 devices per 100,000 people. This number has now increased to 224 television devices per

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100,000. Furthermore, the media message of these networks has reached most of the world’s population. As an example, CNN News broadcasts to most of the world. In addition, Europe and North America combined own two-thirds of the world’s TV and radio stations, even though these countries constitute only 20% of the world’s population Poor countries are not the only ones that fear cultural globalization, but even some western countries have also become afraid of American cultural globalization. This is what led the French Minister of Culture to call for the preservation of the “French identity” from the American culture, as the American film industry was able to achieve profits amounting to 8.1 billion dollars in the European Union countries alone. Therefore, France, due to its awareness of this threat to its cultural identity, has supported the film industry with $40 million annually, which helped make France the leading European country in terms of film production with 185 films per year. The French fear of losing their cultural identity was also represented through a law which prohibited wearing the headscarf for Muslim students in public schools. Even though this law caused a global outcry, it was widely welcomed by the French. The clearest image of cultural globalization is demonstrated by the huge demand for American films. For example, the ten highest grossing films of all time are all American. The film “Titanic,” which tops the list at $1,235 million, depicts the tale of a famous story within the American heritage. John Stuart Mill, author of the Utility Theory, defends the openness that globalization provides as he considers the economic benefits of trade to be insignificant when compared to intellectual benefits and values. Mill feels it is difficult to realize the importance of different people talking, as there is no nation that does not need to borrow from other nations. However, opponents of cultural globalization argue that this may be true and acceptable when the process of dialogue is based on the principle of equality in proposing ideas and defending beliefs, which is not achieved in reality; instead, there is one party that wants to impose its values on others. One party that tries to convince the others that their poverty and misery is because of the values and culture they uphold, and that the solution to all their

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problems is to embrace the western model of culture. This unequal transfer of cultures in one direction has widely been labelled as cultural invasion. The struggle to preserve cultural identity is not limited to intellectual products, but also extends to the realm of culinary cuisine. Due to the fierce competition between American food companies, such as McDonalds, Burger King, Pizza Hut and Dunkin Donuts, these companies sought new opportunities abroad. The food distribution for these companies in Europe reached 16% of their total food distribution operations in the world. In Europe in particular, where the kitchen is strongly linked to the culture, the crawling of American fast food faces strong resistance from some Europeans. In one incident which represents this resistance, a McDonald’s branch in southwestern France was looted. Although globalization calls for the removal of barriers that prevent the movement of goods, ideas and individuals, western countries have begun to place many restrictions on immigration. The number of immigrants abroad increased dramatically from 76 million in 1960 to 175 million in 2000. On the other hand, it seems that western countries have recently begun modifying their strategies with respect to immigrants and limiting their entry to their lands. Germany, France and Italy, in particular, have imposed strict restrictions on incoming immigration applications. The United States also appears to be moving in the same direction, which contradicts the political objective of globalization However, many countries cannot put a strict ban on the flow of foreign workers to them, because they desperately need some of these workers. In 2015, the European Union recorded a total of 228.7 million employees. Considering the information revolution, developed countries will seek to attract more scientific competencies from the poor countries. This is especially evident when considering that according to a 2018 report by National Science Foundation (Table 5-1), the percentage of foreigners who receive doctorate degrees in the United States is 62% of the total number of recipients. Furthermore, the United States retains over 70% of them.

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Table 5-1. Plans of foreign doctoral recipients to stay in the United States Year of Doctorate 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Total Recipients 9,453 9,603 9,263 9,878 10,601 11,989 13,338 14,112 14,525 14,165 13,260 13,788 14,314 14,950 15,285 15,627

% With Plans to Stay 72% 75% 74% 72% 73% 76% 78% 79% 77% 75% 74% 75% 75% 75% 76% 76%

% With Firm Plans to Stay 49% 54% 52% 48% 48% 50% 53% 52% 51% 50% 49% 48% 49% 44% 43% 44%

(Source: nsf.gov)

5.5. POLITICAL GLOBALIZATION Economic globalization can be recognized by the growing power of transnational companies, as well as the significant effect of the technological developments in the transmission of information on political concepts. The concept that is potentially the most influenced by globalization is the concept of state sovereignty. There is a global trend towards privatization, which includes the unitary countries. Many signs are clear indicators that all countries are riding the wave of globalization, including: the increasing role of the private sector, the decline of the governmental role in controlling the local economy, as well as abandonment of governments, in many countries, to their traditional role as social welfare states. Among the global trends that fall within the framework of political globalization is the trend towards democracy as the ideal model for the political system and its role in reducing the tyranny of the unitary government. The number of unions and organizations reached nearly 20,000 in 2000, as compared to only 200

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organizations and unions in 1960. The call of western countries to spread democracy may appear to be an expression of the success of the modernity idea that they adopt, which is considered to be the main reason for the development achieved by these countries. It is clear that globalization has diminished the sovereignty of states in terms of their control over the transmission of information and control over the local economy. This is due to the tremendous revolution in the field of communications, which facilitated the freedom to transfer information and ideas, and consequently limiting the ability of countries to confront the ideas and beliefs that they did not want to reach to their community members. This can be substantiated by a quick look at the vast number of websites that provide a cornucopia of information. , In addition, there are dozens of satellite channels that each may reflect an intellectual vision that may not be compatible with the different local culture and beliefs. Hence, governments can no longer put barriers on the access of these different cultures to the society they dominate. If there are some countries that are still obstructing the influx of media and information coming from abroad, such efforts, given enough time and advancement in technological capabilities, will fail. The decline in state sovereignty places some countries in a weaker position in the face of transnational companies that are increasing in strength and wealth due to globalization. Such increasing power places these companies in a position that allows them to exert pressure on governments, especially the force that is backed by international agreements and treaties. For example, the North American Free Trade Agreement and the General Tariff and Trade Agreement allow governments to impose domestic restrictions on free global trade practices. The impact of globalization on the political side not only changed the concept of state sovereignty, but also completely changed the concept of power. In the past, state power was measured by area, population, natural resources, and the size of the armed forces. However, in the current era of the globalization that continues to sweep traditional concepts, the concept of power has become the possession of information and advanced technology, which can compensate for many of the shortage in traditional resources. Due to the increasing competition between countries, the struggle to own information will intensify over time.

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Among the political concepts that have been changed by globalization is the concept of security in its traditional sense, as it is no longer possible to maintain security by the old methods. The attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001 provide a perfect example of the collapse of the concept of preserving national security in a self-protection manner. The ability to obtain the high technologies that are capable of penetrating security barriers has made it important to transform the concept of security into a global concept in which everyone participates, and the attacks on New York and Washington in 2001 confirm this need. This new understanding of security led states to conglomerate against any threats that they may face by entering into alliances among themselves, where each country harnesses its potential to serve this alliance, which in turn each can benefit from. The European Union is the best proof of this type of alliances. The European countries have gathered under a unified framework that guarantees them benefits in the political, economic, security and other fields by grouping their forces within an integrated system.

5.6. ETHICAL ISSUES RELATED TO GLOBALIZATION Globalization is certainly a complex phenomenon due to the multiplicity and diversity of its effects. However, a question that arises when discussing globalization is whether this phenomenon will increase the happiness of mankind or will it cause it more misery. When considering the ethicality of seeking to globalize the world, the question really falls under the discussion of the ethical use of computers, because computers represent the backbone of globalization. It is not easy to answer the question of whether globalization helps increase the well-being of people in the world or increases their misery. This is especially true for the non-economic aspects of globalization, where it is difficult to judge due to the debate being more philosophical than quantitative. Therefore, it is difficult to reach any conclusions that can convince others of the benefits or harm of globalizing on the various aspects of human life. Let us try to answer this question by analyzing the current

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economic situation of the world, decades after the emergence of globalization. The economic question is whether globalization reduced or intensified the phenomenon of poverty? The language of numbers in economic aspects makes it easier to answer the posed question. As previously stated, the numbers reveal that globalization, and contrary to what its advocates claim, has exacerbated the phenomenon of the world’s poverty. Statistics show that the national income of the majority of the poor countries decreased during the rise of globalization, which constitutes the period of 1990 through 2000. According to United Nations reports, there is a great disparity in income between rich and poor countries. This constitutes a severe polarization in the extremities meaning that the rich get richer, and the poor get poorer. The ratio of the income of the top 20% of the world’s population to the income of the lowest 20% has jumped from 30 to 1 (30:1) in 1960 to 78 to 1 (78:1) in 1994. During the same period, the personal assets of the world’s 30 richest billionaires have become greater than the total annual income of a group of countries whose population makes up 50% of the world’s population. This polarization does not only apply to countries, it also applies to the social classes in a single society. The middle class has nearly vanished in many countries and became closer to the poor class. The US Census Bureau reported that income disparities between the rich and the poor are currently higher than they were at any time since the end of World War II in 1945. In 2007, the top 20% of Americans owned 86% of the country’s wealth and the bottom 80% of the population owned the remaining 14% of the country’s wealth. In 2011, the top 20% of the population owned 93% and the bottom 80% owning a meager 7%. In addition, in 2018, only 39% of Americans have enough savings to cover a $1,000 emergency. The middle- and working-class families, in particular, have suffered a severe blow. The incomes of middle-class families in 1996 were 4% less than in 1989. The bottom line is that the number of poor people continues to increase everywhere, and that the segment of people living in extreme poverty is the fastest growing segment of the population in all countries around the world. Developing countries, which are considered dependent countries, face great difficulty in obtaining advanced technology that enables them to

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compete in the global market. The monopoly of such technology gives industrialized countries and transnational companies a clear advantage, in addition to the monopolistic power in the markets. This situation means that developing countries that have low-skilled labor will find themselves at an unfair confrontation in light of a global economic situation that requires the availability of advanced technical skills, which is not available in these countries. Thus, these countries lag behind the procession and don’t benefit from globalization. The most developed industrialized countries accounted for more than 88% of Internet users in 1998, even though they comprise less than 25% of the world’s population. North America boasts more than half of the world’s Internet users, even though its population makes up less than 5% of the world’s population. As for the countries of South Asia, which includes 20% of the world’s population, the proportion of Internet users has reached less than 1%. The communication gap between developed and developing countries is widening such that many observers believe that the world is rapidly being divided into the information rich and the information poor. If the rich countries who advocate globalization are serious about their claim that globalization helps to lift the poor out of the quagmire of poverty and deprivation, then they must play a positive and influential role in that. Again, the numbers say otherwise and increase the aversion of the poor to globalization. As compared to $6 billion spent on educating children, $9 billion on providing clean water, and $13 billion on health care, Americans spend $4 billion on cosmetics alone, and $20 billion on jewelry. In addition, Americans and Europeans combine for $17 billion spent on feeding their pets, while Europeans also spend $11 billion on ice cream. Furthermore, in 2016, 13% of the people in the world did not have access to electricity. In 2005, an estimated 100 million (1 in 65 at the time) people worldwide are homeless, and 15% of the world population lacked adequate housing (i.e., live in unsafe and unsanitary homes). Meanwhile, the top 20% of highincome people account for 86% of all private consumption, while the poorest 20% consume only 1.3%. If we want to apply the utility theory in judging the ethicality of the phenomenon of globalization, the result will surely be against the

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phenomenon of globalization. Remember, according to the utility theory, the criterion of ethicality of an action is the extent it spreads happiness among the greatest number of people. When we consider that only 20% of the people in the world are the ones benefiting from globalization, while 80% of them suffer from the hardship of living and the bitterness of poverty, the utility theory would consider globalization unethical because it increases the suffering of the majority for the sake of the minority. If we turn our attention to judging the ethics of cultural globalization, we find the matter more complicated than judging economic globalization. The fundamental question regarding cultural globalization is whether it is in the interest of humankind to have a multiplicity of cultures, or is it better that one global culture is formed? This is controversial question that Samuel Huntington tried to answer in his famous article, “The Clash of Civilizations”. In this article, Huntington concluded that it is impossible for different civilizations to reconcile and coexist culturally, and therefore he expects that these civilizations to clash because the values on which each civilization is based differ radically from the values of other civilizations. Advocates of the necessity of preserving national identity in the face of cultural globalization consider that this type of globalization goes against nature, which basically favors multiculturalism. Thus, trying to create a cosmic culture is swimming against the tide of nature, and it is in the interest of humankind to have cultural pluralism. This notion was confirmed by the international media of UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) saying “cultural diversity is as necessary for humankind as biodiversity is for nature. In this sense, it is the common heritage of humanity and should be recognized and affirmed for the benefit of present and future generations.” Defenders of the cultural privacy of each civilization emphasize that a distinction must be made between the necessity of providing the appropriate environment for cross-fertilization of cultures, their openness on each other, and the respect of each civilization to the values of other civilizations in order to create a conviction for imperative coexistence. The 1998 UNESCO World Culture Report describes the danger to local cultures, saying that the cultural values that define and connect local, regional, and national

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communities seem to be at risk of being dominated by the cruel and merciless world market forces. The report continues to say that such circumstances give rise to questions about the ability of societies to manage the effects of globalization without harming the local and national cultures. Furthermore, it threatens the state of creativity that these societies work to preserve and enhance. Let’s assume that we are in agreement with the United Nations’ perspective stating that humanity’s interest is in the continuity of multiculturalism in the world. From that perspective, the measures that particular countries, especially the United States, take in order to spread their values and culture and try to impose them on the whole world, is not in the best interest of mankind. Thus, cultural globalization lacks the ethical basis for generalizing its model to others. The evaluation of political globalization from an ethical point of view is more difficult than the evaluation of economic and cultural globalization. This is mainly because the discussion about political globalization, including its philosophical vision of the role of the state in society and its relationship to the individual, is a theoretical discussion that has been extensively covered verbally and in literature. It is the basis of a heated controversy between the political philosophical schools, and therefore is difficult to judge quantitatively. Consequently, this evaluation will remain subject to the philosophical perspective of whoever performs the evaluation process. The liberal thought, which serves as the basis for the systems of government in western countries, believes in the necessity to limit the state’s role in directing individuals. John Locke, the first theorist of political liberalism, believed the role of the government should be limited to creating the appropriate conditions for the individual to achieve his aspirations and goals with one condition; doing so without violating the rights of others. In contrast to the liberal view, there are other countries that adopt the conservative vision, which believes that the state should play a pivotal role in the society by directing its members towards the social, moral and cultural goals and values that unite society members; thus, forming the society’s own identity. Moreover, this conservative vision believes that the state should

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assume its responsibility to preserve the principles and values that unite the members of society.

Chapter 6

COMPUTER AND INFORMATION CRIMES 6.1. INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION SECURITY In the early days of computers, before the Internet, information security was limited to the physical security of the hardware systems from physical intrusions and natural disasters, including but not limited to: physical harm, trespass, theft, fire, flood, etc. The advancement of network communication systems and the availability of remote access through the Internet added another dimension to information security, which is referred to as “logical security”. Both dimensions of information security constitute a major topic of considerable concern in the field of computing ethics. Logical security consists of employing tools, safeguards, and controls to protect the three main characteristics that describe the utilization of information, namely: confidentiality, integrity, and availability. In addition to hardware and software technology elements, security controls also include the necessary policies, procedures, and personnel training programs. Significant threats and challenges to information security are presented, in particular, by hackers and malicious software known as “malware.” In subsequent sections of this chapter, the main types of the threats to information security will be discussed in detail, but for now a brief overview will help establish the ethical issues associated with computer and information crimes.

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As the name implies, malware is generally a program that is intended to perform malevolent actions and achieve damaging or harmful results to the target systems. Viruses are the most common type of malicious code that cannot operate independently but rather are usually inserted into other programs or files. Worms and Trojan horses are also popular types of malicious programs that are very similar in nature to viruses but differ in the way they present and behave. Worms can move on their own from one computer system to another across networks, with parts of the worm operating on different computer systems. Trojan horses are malware programs that are usually disguised within helpful or entertaining pieces of software, such as system maintenance programs or games. Malicious and sinister programs also include but not limited to spyware, adware, ransomware, and logic bombs. All of which are basically variations of the viruses, worms, or Trojan horses, that have been redesigned to serve special purposes or are triggered by specific conditions. Computer and information crimes, such as espionage, embezzlement, extortion, sabotage or planting of malware, are committed for different motives and by various types of individuals or groups. The weakest link to information security is personnel (i.e., the trusted computer users). Social engineering is the art of using social skills to manipulate people to reveal so they reveal confidential or personal information, such as passwords or account information, to the attacker. This could prove to be a much easier approach than trying to penetrate a target system by compromising several technological controls and safeguards. Another major threat to computer security is the so-called “hacker” who uses technical or social skills to bypass security controls and gain unauthorized access to a target computer system. Some hackers intentionally infiltrate a system in order to steal data for financial gain or commit vandalism for retaliatory reasons. Other hackers, the other hand, tend to do it for fun or as a personal challenge.

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6.2. ETHICALITY OF THREATS AND VIOLATION TO INFORMATION SECURITY As stated before, every threat to logical security is directed at compromising the confidentiality, integrity, and/or availability of information. According to Whitman and Mattord, there are three general categories that cause unethical or illegal behavior: • • •

Intent: the act is intentionally directed at compromising the security of information. Accident: the act is an honest mistake that resulted in a threat to information security. Ignorance: the act is a result of not knowing any better with respect to an information security policy or procedure.

It is hard to argue against the fact that all the acts related to the design, programming, implementation, and dissemination of malware are intentional, and so are the acts related to hacking. When the act is intentional, it is considered a clear violation of some (if not all) ethical and moral codes related to computing (Figure 6-1), not to mention the laws against such acts that are legislated in almost all societies in the world. In addition, most malware and hacking activities are harmful in nature. Therefore, it is easy to infer that most (if not all) computer and information crimes committed using malware or hacking activities are unethical. What about the security violations which are not intentional, such as the ones that are caused by ignorance or as accidents? How about the security breaches that are not meant to cause any harm, such as hacking for fun or as a personal challenge? Regardless of the motive or cause, every breach to information security should be considered harmful because it shows clear weaknesses in the computer or network systems and their security safeguards; which require costly and time-consuming operations to repair vulnerabilities, address any shortcomings in security controls, and/or restore data and services of the compromised system.

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(Source: computerethicsinstitute.org) Figure 6-1. Ten Commandments of Computer Ethics.

(Source: quranx.com) Figure 6-2. Hadith 3628 and Hadith 2340.

Islam’s position is very clear when it comes to harming other people or their property, as it considers such acts to be unlawful. The Sunnah of the Prophet stressed and emphasized the protection of people from harm and hostility. As the noble hadith stated “If anyone harms (others), Allah will harm him, and if anyone shows hostility to others, Allah will show hostility

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to him” (Sunan Abu Dawud, Hadith 3628). In another hadith, the Messenger directs Muslims by saying, “There should be neither harming nor reciprocating harm” (Sunan Ibn Majah, Volume 3, Book 13, Hadith 2340) (Figure 6-2).

6.3. COMPUTER VIRUSES Computer viruses have many characteristics, most important of which are their abilities to hide, reproduce and move. In addition, viruses are associated with distinct fingerprint or signature, as well as unique destruction capabilities. The following bullets discuss these characteristics in more detail: •

•

•

The ability to hide: Viruses use several ways to hide themselves, including the following: • The virus links itself to common programs, and when these programs are executed, the virus spawns and destroys the data. • The virus can enter as a hidden file, among other files, so that it is not visible when viewing the file names on the disk. • Some viruses can reside in memory locations that are difficult for the user to notice. • Some viruses remain static for a long time, and the infected files remain functional for a period of time. Reproduction: A virus has the ability to multiply through means of duplicating itself. Reproduction can occur in memory or inside every file that the virus infects, and results in many viruses. Mobility: A virus can move inside the memory from one place to another, so that it is difficult to locate, thus increasing the difficulty of removing the virus

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•

Fingerprint or Signature: Each virus has a fingerprint or signature (i.e., a specific phrase or code) that it places inside the infected program by which it can be recognized. Destruction: Each virus has a so-called detonator that destroys data as soon as it is runs. The detonator can be associated with a specific date such as the “Michelangelo” virus, a specific time, press of specific key on the keyboard, execution of a specific command, etc. (Figure 6-3).

6.3.1. Computer Semi-Viruses These are types of destructive programs that partially meet the definition of the virus, in which some of the characteristics of the aforementioned viruses are available, but not all of them. These types are similar to viruses as they operate in a hidden manner and without the knowledge of the user. They also perform computer operations that they are deliberately designed for. Worms and Trojan horses are two such examples of semi-viruses. A worm is a program that reproduces itself, but it does not contaminate other programs. It copies itself to and from removable disks (or flash drives), or across networks. Some of these depend on the network to accomplish their work. The host worm is a type of worm that uses the network to copy itself to computers connected to the network. The network worm, on the other hand, distributes its parts on several computers, and later relies on the network to combine and execute these parts. Worms can appear on separate computers, copying themselves to multiple places on the hard drive. The difference between worms and viruses is that worms do not delete or change files, but rather consume device resources and use memory in a manner that leads to a noticeable slow performance of the device.

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As for Trojan horses, these are destructive cunning program that hides within programs that appear innocent (service or application) so that the user is tempted by its importance, shape, or name. When the user runs one of these programs, the devious part is activated to perform the specific job that it is designed for. Such programs mostly a backdoor that enables the hackers to enter into and tamper with the infected device. Trojan horses differ from regular viruses in that they do not reproduce themselves.

6.3.2. Harm Caused by Computer Viruses There are many damages that result from computer being infected with a virus, the most important of which are the following: • •

• • • •

•

Missing some important application files that cause the application to stop working. The memory is full as a result of the virus replicating itself, which slows down the work of the memory or indicating that the memory is full. This in turn may make impossible to continue working before closing some applications. The file system (i.e., file directory and index) is lost, which results in lost or missing files. Boot sector is lost and thus the disk loses the ability to load the operating system. Some virus-infected removable disks (or flash drives) are damaged due to the inability to disinfect them from viruses. The emergence of sudden messages that change the installation of some of the programs, especially with programming languages, which makes the programs not executable. The computer or device abruptly stops working, which leads to losing the unsaved work.

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(Source: transparencyreport.google.com) Figure 6-3. Number of Website Deemed Dangerous by Safe Browsing.

• • •

Change in the positions of the letters of the keyboard, which leads to disruption of work and waste of time. Loss of the complete system, especially with networks, which leads to re-setting the networks system. Some applications and programs become suspended or nonoperational.

6.3.3. Symptoms of Viruses In the event that the computer is infected with viruses, it will demonstrate symptoms that suggest as much. The most significant of these symptoms include the following: • • • • • •

The operating system cannot be loaded or loss of the ability to use it properly. The system stops working suddenly and for no apparent reason. Significant increase or decrease in the size of a file. Unintended changes to multiple files. Some file names do not appear when browsing the contents of the disk. A sudden and unexpected error message to indicate that there is not enough memory to run programs, even though the available memory is abundant.

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The emergence of new files with strange names, unusual extensions, or without file size. Unrecognized characters appear on the screen when you press the keyboard. Change in the appearance of the file markers or icons. Accesses to disks or disk operations are more than usual. The system slows down significantly. Inability to operate or execute some applications. A sudden and severe drop in memory. When using disk scanning programs, a message appears to indicate there is no match between the discovered free space on the hard disk and the actual free space on the hard disk. There is a continuous decrease in the free space on the hard disk, although no new programs or files have been added. Inability to access or operate some computer peripherals such as removable drive, flash disk, or printer, without a clear reason for these units to stop working. The system completely collapses, and the computer is unable to function.

6.3.4. Work Stages for Viruses Viruses work in different ways. The general method produced by all viruses can be divided into three basic stages: •

•

Entry Stage: This is the stage in which the virus enters the device. A virus infiltrates the device by hiding in a contaminated program file. Propagation Stage: This stage marks the start of infection and spread. The virus begins its life cycle on the device in a similar manner to a Trojan program, as it hides within another program or file. In a contaminated executable file, the virus adds its malicious code to the original program. The virus also modifies the code of the original program

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•

so that control is transferred to the code of the virus. When the infected executable is run, the program jumps to the virus instructions and executes them, then returns again to execute the instructions of the original program. At this point the virus is active and the device has become infected. Also, the infected program becomes a source of infection and in turn infects more executables. Virus programmers usually resort to writing their malicious programs so that they pass through a dormancy phase immediately after infection. During the dormancy phase there is no effect for the virus on the work of the affected program, so that the user does not notice any change. This allows for an important and necessary stage for the reproduction of the virus, which is the propagation phase. Implementation Stage: At the end of the propagation phase, the triggering phase begins the virus operations. This can be considered a conditional stage as its implementation depends on the fulfillment of a special condition (as determined by the virus program designer). The triggering condition can be as a specific date, a certain number of virus copies, or any other set by the programmer. Once the condition is met, the virus performs its sabotage tasks.

6.3.5. Methods of Spreading a Virus There are many ways to spread a computer virus, the most frequent of which are the following: •

Sharing files via computer networks: In the event that a server is infected with a virus, there is the potential for infection to the rest of the peripheral client devices with the same virus. Infecting one of the peripheral devices can also lead to transmission of infection to the server and then to the rest of the network devices (Figure 6-4).

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Since networks are most vulnerable to virus infection, the network administrator, in companies that use networks, should perform a periodic check of all devices to ensure that they are free of viruses. Copying programs from electronic repositories: Electronic repositories are a set of archives that include standard databases and programs that are updated regularly, and are available to many users who share a common profession. Installing a new program on the computer: New programs aren’t necessarily free of computer virus infection for certain, even if these programs are original, wrapped, and sealed. There is always the possibility for sabotage of the original version of the program. Moving the devices themselves: This situation occurs when a new device is requested from the supplier or a device is transferred from one department to another. The virus may transfer with the device to its new location and when the device is used, the virus is activated and the infection occurs on all computers that are in contact with it. Using a virus infected removable drive or flash disk: Some viruses merge onto or attach themselves to the programs in the drive/disk. When a user operates the device or transfers a file from one drive/disk to another, the virus also transfers and the reproduction begins.

(Source: transparencyreport.google.com) Figure 6-4. Unsafe Websites Detected Per Week.

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•

Through email attachments: Emails are the principal source of viruses, because they are easy to add to the attachments and they can quickly spread over the network in a very short time. Reading the text of the email itself is never harmful. However, if the email has attachments, then the email recipient should be very careful not to open any attachment without scanning it for viruses first. Bad exchange of programs: It means copying software from disks that are not original. Illegal copies of software programs increase the opportunity to infect such programs with viruses.

6.3.6. Prevention of Viruses Virus prevention means protecting the system from infection by any virus. However, there is no 100% protection from viruses, unless you isolate your device from the Internet, and prevent downloading of any program. Yet, this idea is not logical at all, because the computer and the network, local or Internet, are really inseparable. It is difficult to imagine much benefit from the one without the other. Taking the necessary measures to prevent viruses can avoid many of the serious consequences that may arise from infection with viruses. The preventive measures against viruses can be summarized as follows: • •

•

•

Using original software and not copies. Preparing several backup copies of the original software (i.e., copies that are not contaminated with the virus), and saving them so that they can be retrieved when needed. Maintaining a record of all versions of the application programs. This is especially true of those programs obtained from other sources or from the Internet. Do not download any programs from outside sources, as this is the main cause for introducing viruses into system and subsequently

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infecting all disks and all devices on the network. This especially applies to free programs that are transferred by individuals, distributed by specialized computer magazines, or are available from unreliable sites on the Internet. Extra caution must always be taken when dealing with downloads; even those programs that come from reliable sources must be inspected well. All software must be inspected or tested before use. The testing should occur on a standalone network device. This should be done by using antivirus software and also by searching for any abnormal behavior in the program, such as the symptoms of viruses that have been mentioned above. Even if the program does not exhibit any abnormal behavior, it does not necessarily mean that the program is clean. As we mentioned above, viruses can remain dormant and may not reveal their vicious behavior except at the appropriate moment. Checking the files from time to time to verify their size and extensions. Review hidden files; and if new file names are found, there is a possibility of infection with viruses. Monitoring executables and configuration files from time to time. Performing a comprehensive scan of the computer device periodically to ensure that there are no viruses on the device and eliminating them as necessary. Special attention should be given to the cleanliness of the backup files, such as compressed or archive files, because viruses can conveniently hide in these types of files. Viruses can remain hidden in backup files for a very long time and are activated when these backups are restored. Periodic inspection of mobile storage units, when taken from others, using any anti-virus program. Not opening any email attachments, even if they come from trusted sources, unless the content of the attached file is known in advance. This is especially true for files with the extensions “exe” and “vbs” (i.e., executable and VBScript program files respectively).

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Do not visit unknown websites or download illegal or unethical material. Avoid erratic browsing or answering random advertisements, especially ones related to technology. Installing a reliable antivirus program. It is advisable to have such program be permanently present in memory and be loaded automatically at the start of the device. These programs ensure protection against viruses that are known to them. Unfortunately, they are helpless in the face of new viruses, whose fingerprints or signatures are not stored in the program’s database. This makes it imperative to update virus definition file of these programs or use newer versions of them.

6.3.7. Treatment of Viruses Before starting the antivirus treatment process, it is always recommended to back up important information on the device (if there is no recent backup). This is because many antivirus programs may not be able to get rid of viruses except by deleting the infected files. In rare cases, it may even be necessary to format the hard disk. It is always better to have copies of the files, even if they are infected, as it may be possible to clean these files in the future. Antivirus programs (also known as virus protection software) all serve the same purpose, which is to scan the device for viruses and remove them as necessary. These programs also scan every incoming file and warn the user about any file that is infected with any known virus (Figure 6-5).

6.4. HACKERS AND VANDALS The term “hackers” was first used to refer to skilled programmers in computer technologies, programming, and networking who have the knowledge and experience to provide solutions to difficult problems. In

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addition, these professionals were always motivated by reform and worked within applicable laws. This term is still valid and has positive connotations within the computer society (i.e., among specialists in information technology). However, the term and should not be confused with the other meaning that describes a group of programmers who possess the same hackers’ skills, who are called “crackers” and saboteurs, but employ their skills to perform illegal activities, such as breaching and decoding programs, for improper purposes such as espionage, theft or sabotage. However, it should be noted that in non-specialized societies, such as the internet user community, the two terms crackers and hackers are used as synonyms, which negatively affects the positive meaning of hackers. Consequently, the term “hackers” has become very common on the Internet and it is always associated with subversive acts and unlawful use of computers and networks for the unethical purposes. From this point on within the text, the term “hackers” will be used congruently with its common internet definition.

(Source: ergonotes.com) Figure 6-5. Some of the Major Commercial Antivirus Software.

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6.4.1. The Concept of Hacking The term “hacking” is synonymous with the meaning of invasion, penetration or intrusion. This term generally describes the act of illegally breaking into a particular place by remote access using the loopholes in the protection system of that place for the purpose of carrying out unlawful actions. Hacking is used in the information technology field to refer to illegally accessing a computer system or network, by using another device, for the purpose of carrying out illegal acts.

6.4.1.1. Hacking Methods Hacking methods depend on the hacker’s capabilities. The methods include: •

•

•

Hacking the servers or main systems of companies, institutions, or government agencies by penetrating the firewalls that are usually placed to protect them. Often, this is accomplished through identity theft that allows entry to the system by simulating IP addresses that are trusted by the target system. Hacking of personal computing system and tampering with the information they contain. This method is unfortunately common for two reasons. On one hand, a lot of the owners of personal systems do not know the principles of protecting their devices. On the other hand, various hacking tools are conveniently available and are marginally easy to learn and use. Among the most important effects of this type of penetration is the seizure of passwords that a person uses to obtain various services, such as access to the Internet and potentially impersonating the victim in chat forums. It often takes sometime before the victim discovers the intrusion. Figure 6-6 illustrates the results of the 2019 state of password and authentication security behaviors report. Intercepting the data during transmission and identifying its encryption details, such as the encryption algorithm and keys (if data is encrypted). This method is used to acquire confidential credit or

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debit card numbers, as well as revealing personal and confidential bank account data. One of the effects of this breach is theft with the intent of financial gain, such as transferring money from bank accounts or obtaining special financial services or privileges. In this context, it is advised not to give credit card numbers to e-commerce sites on the Internet without ensuring that these sites adhere to strict security principles.

6.4.1.2. Forms of Hacking The forms of hacking are numerous and vary depending on the perpetrating entity and the technique used for penetration. The most prevalent forms of hacking to which Internet users are usually exposed to include: •

•

•

Systematic infiltration by governmental authorities, either openly or secretly. Almost all countries conduct this kind of penetration in order to maintain the welfare and preserve the safety of their societies. Penetration by hackers by exploiting vulnerabilities in the system’s communication ports. In this regard, the user should identify the vulnerabilities of the system and implement security controls to resolve them. The computer user should also know and apply the principles for protecting his system from hackers. This is in addition to taking all necessary precautions needed to prevent hackers’ attacks. Being hacked by using spyware programs and files. This is more dangerous than the other methods, since hackers can install a spying program on the user’s system that will allow the perpetrator to receive information, as was prescribed by malicious program. In this context, the user must know how his system can be infected with spyware, how to search for and remove it, as well as the precautions that must be followed to prevent spyware.

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(Source: yubico.com) Figure 6-6. 2019 State of Password and Authentication Security Behaviors.

6.4.1.3. Systems Vulnerabilities There are copious vulnerabilities that can be exploited to penetrate computer systems, including: •

•

•

Hacking the system by obtaining the privileges of the person having total responsibility for the system, or what is known as “Administrator Control” mode in the Windows system. This mode is characterized by its ability to do anything on the system. Hacking the system by an employee with powerful user’s rights and privileges to allow him to carry out many dangerous operations on the system from within the company. This is usually an act of revenge Statistics show that this type of penetration is culpable for a large proportion of the violations that take place in the world. Hacking the system by installing software at the core of the operating system with the purpose of commanding the system and

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manipulating kernel data with the intention of destroying the system. Hacking the system through the system’s security vulnerabilities. Hacking the system by stealing system passwords. Hacking the system by the use of viruses and Trojan spyware. These are programs designed to surreptitiously cause destruction or to open security holes. The aforementioned security holes, referred to as backdoors or trapdoors, are usually used to carry out attacks on the system at later times.

6.4.1.4. Motives for Hacking Some of the hackers practice hacking as a hobby, an opportunity to demonstrate their personal skills, or as a self-challenge. Others use hacking to accomplish several unlawful or destructive goals such as: • • • • • •

Obtaining money by stealing bank information such as account numbers or credit cards. Obtaining personal information or pictures that can be used for extortion, blackmail, or for financial purposes. Obtaining passwords for the email so for the purpose of spying on private messages or stealing the entire email domain. Obtaining the secret codes for website for the purpose of destroying it or altering its contents. Revenge on a person by destroying his personal computer system or retaliation on an entity by destroying its private networks or website. Obtaining various services through impersonation of a victim in personal or professional communication platforms.

6.5. SPYWARE Spyware is a term that is an abbreviation for spying software. Spyware is technically a semi-virus Trojan that is inserted and run on the victim’s computer without his or her knowledge. The purpose of such files is spying

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on and recording all of the victim’s activities on his personal computer. Using these files, a hacker can penetrate the victim’s machine through the open communication ports. This is accomplished by using one of the spyware programs, which in this case is acts as a “Client” that will be linked with the spyware file, which in this case acts as a “Server”. The hacker can then set a “username” and a “password”, for the so-called “server”, which allows him to be the only person who can access the victim’s machine or open the computer to other hackers.

6.5.1. Methods of Infection with Spyware Some of the most common methods of infecting a computer spyware are as follows: •

•

• •

•

Through chat or messaging sessions, where the spyware program is sent from a hacker within an image file without the knowledge of the victim. The spyware program is received as an attachment to an email, especially when the source of the email is a stranger to the victim. Upon downloading the attached file, the spyware files are installed on the system. Downloading programs or files from suspicious sites, such as indecent sites or sites that claim to teach espionage or hacking. Visiting suspicious or immoral websites will cause spyware to be downloaded automatically to the visitor’s computer without consent or knowledge. Using infected external disks or removable storage mediums.

6.5.2. Methods to Prevent Infection with Spyware Among the ways to prevent a computer system from being infected with spyware are the following:

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Not opening any messages if the sender or source is not known or is not trustworthy. Not receiving any files or programs from strangers while using chat or communication programs. Not downloading any files or programs from unknown or untrusted sites Not visiting immoral or other suspicious sites. Installing a program to detect, remove, and prevent spyware and viruses (i.e., antispyware or antivirus). Not using external disks or removable storage mediums before they are checked by antispyware or antivirus.

6.5.3. Factors of Hacking through Spyware Factors that help hackers to penetrate computer systems using spyware include the following: •

•

Existence of a spyware file: Hackers can penetrate a computer system and tamper with its contents by utilizing the spyware file, also called Trojan horse, which serves as the gateway to the system. The hackers can then employ one of the hacking programs that would be linked to the spyware file on the computer system. Internet connection: Hackers can only access a computer system if the device is connected to the Internet. However, if the system is not connected to the Internet or any other network, it is impossible for anyone to access it, other than person physically using the system. If there is any doubt that the system is being hacked, the computer should be quickly disconnected from the network and Internet to prevent the hacker from continuing to snoop and tamper with the system.

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Hacking program and tools: In order for the regular hacker to penetrate a computer system, he needs to have a hacking program that will be linked with the spyware file, which has been previously installed on the system.

6.6. NETWORK SECURITY RISKS In general, computers and networks face security risks that can be classified into three categories: 1. Natural hazards: Natural hazards include natural disasters such as fires and earthquakes. 2. Internal risks: Internal risks are results of sabotage operations that are committed by people who are employed by the same organization that owns computers and networks. 3. External risks: External risks are caused by people outside the organization who enter the network illegally. These people are often referred to as hackers, saboteurs, or crackers. External risk can also be caused by remotely sending destructive viruses to the network that are intended to destroy its data.

6.6.1. Network Hacking Vulnerabilities Among the most common mistakes or errors that lead to the ease of penetration of the network are the following: • •

Setting easy passwords for accessing the Internet. Failure to update the systems when security loopholes are found.

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Using unencrypted network communication protocols such as Telnet. Sending passwords over the phone. Employing unqualified and untrained people in systems security. Lack of understating of how to apply security in practice. Relying only on firewalls and security devices without involving security professionals. Opening attachments that come with an email even though from an unknown source. Not using security patches, especially the Internet browser patches. Installing programs from unknown sources. Connect systems before installing security programs or security protection firewalls.

The use of network protection and security programs is considered essential to reduce the risks that the network may be encounter or be subjected to, especially when the network is constantly connected to the Internet.

6.6.2. Network Protection Programs Network protection programs are divided into three types: 1. Firewall software between the network and the outside world: Firewalls are preferred to be on standalone devices or systems and should function as a single-entry point to the network. These programs usually possess great computing intelligence that can trained to accept friendly requests and reject snooping or propping requests. These systems can also prevent specific devices from entering, authorize a limited number of users or departments to connect to the outside world, as well as prevent a number of applications and services, such as the Internet browsers or messaging apps, from interacting with the network.

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6.6.3. Tips for Passwords Consider the following guidelines and precautionary measures when creating or maintaining passwords: • • • • •

• • •

Passwords should not be less than eight characters. Passwords should not be common proper names for persons. Passwords should not include words in dictionaries. Passwords should not be the username or any of his personal data. Passwords should not be all numbers or all letters. It is strongly recommended that the password includes numbers, symbols, and uppercase and lowercase letters. Passwords should not last long and should be changed regularly. Passwords should not be reused. Passwords should be kept secret and should not be shared with anyone.

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ABOUT THE AUTHORS Abdelrahman Karrar Associate Professor Information Systems Department College of Computer Science & Engineering, Taibah University Abdelrahman Karrar is an Associate Professor in the College of Computer Science and Engineering at Taibah University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He earned his Ph.D. in Computer Science from Omdurman Islamic University, MSc. in Computer Science from University of Gezira and BSc. in Computer Science from Omdurman Ahlia University. He is a member of International Association of Computer Science and Computer Scientists (IAENG), International Association of Computer Science and Information Technology (IACSIT), United Kingdom Professionals Board as Certified Information Technology Specialist (CITS), Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), and International Institute of Engineers and Researcher (IIER). Dr. Karrar has supervised many masters and Ph.D. students in Computer Science, Information Technology and Computer Information Systems. His research interests are Cybersecurity, Artificial Intelligence, eLearning Technologies, Information Security, and Data Mining. He has three published books, and many publications in international conferences proceedings and scientific journals.

144

About the Authors

Kamal Dahbur Professor Information Systems Department College of Computer Science & Engineering, Taibah University Kamal Dahbur is a Professor in the College of Computer Science and Engineering at Taibah University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He earned his Ph.D. and MSc. in Computer Science from DePaul University and BSc. in Computer and Information Systems Engineering from University of Illinois at Chicago. He is a member of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), He is an accomplished researcher, professor and manager with over thirty years’ experience in business management and academia in the fields of in information technology, information systems and computer science. He has done extensive work in information security and using information systems in criminal investigations. Dr. Dahbur research interests include information security, databases, knowledge management, data mining, artificial intelligence, information retrieval, and cloud computing.

INDEX A abuse, 16, 30, 43 access, 18, 39, 44, 45, 47, 48, 54, 57, 62, 72, 89, 102, 105, 109, 110, 117, 124, 128, 129, 136 advancement(s), 22, 81, 86, 102, 109 Africa, 72, 77, 92, 95 age, 75, 84, 87 antivirus software, 121, 132 Arab world, 66, 78, 139 Arabic, xi, 33, 46, 60, 62, 133, 134, 136, 139 Asia, 72, 135, 137 assets, 16, 90, 104, 136 atmosphere, 27, 53, 79 attachment, 43, 120, 128 authentication, 39, 124, 140 authority/authorities, 3, 16, 79, 125 awareness, 1, 79, 83, 99

B barriers, 54, 78, 81, 89, 100, 102, 103 behaviors, 7, 8, 21, 124, 140

benefits, 18, 51, 53, 54, 55, 57, 67, 93, 99, 103 buyer(s), 59, 68, 73, 81

C challenges, 5, 33, 109 children, ix, 12, 54, 55, 105 China, 95, 96, 98 clients, 27, 36, 37, 91 code of ethics, 3, 27 commerce, 44, 81, 88 commercial(s), 11, 13, 15, 34, 44, 46, 55, 64, 78, 81, 90, 96, 98 communication, 13, 18, 33, 54, 72, 97, 98, 105, 109, 125, 127, 128, 129, 131 community/communities, 21, 48, 56, 80, 102, 107, 123 compensation, 16, 67, 68, 70, 72 competition, 40, 55, 57, 73, 95, 100, 102 computer, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 18, 31, 32, 34, 37, 39, 43, 44, 46, 47, 70, 71, 73, 74, 78, 88, 109, 110, 111, 114, 115, 116, 117, 118, 119, 120, 121, 122, 124, 125, 126, 127, 128, 129, 130, 132, 141, 144 computer ethics, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

146

Index

computer science, 4, 144 computer systems, 110, 126, 129 computer technology, 5, 11, 13 computer use, 6, 7, 31, 47, 78, 110, 125 computing, xi, 6, 7, 11, 31, 71, 109, 111, 124, 131, 144 computing problems, xi confidentiality, 36, 51, 109, 111 conflict, 23, 27, 53 consumers, 44, 45, 59, 82 cost, 14, 39, 40, 64, 73, 74, 81, 88 creativity, 23, 25, 31, 80, 107 crimes, 7, 18, 109, 110, 111 culture, 26, 87, 96, 97, 98, 99, 100, 102, 106, 107 customers, 13, 44, 46, 55, 72, 73, 89 customs, 1, 9, 20, 21

D danger, 18, 93, 106 database, 41, 89, 122 democracy, 6, 101, 139 designers, 14, 33, 34, 41 destruction, 6, 85, 113, 127 developed countries, 46, 79, 100 developing countries, 92, 93, 105 dignity, 3, 50, 58, 59

E e-commerce, 11, 81, 125 education, 11, 13, 79 employees, 19, 21, 22, 23, 24, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 95, 100, 136 engineering, 6, 10, 13, 14, 37, 110 environment, 21, 22, 79, 81, 84, 85, 96, 98, 106 espionage, 59, 60, 61, 110, 123, 128 ethical code, 3 ethical issues, xi, 109

ethical responsibility, 2 ethics, v, vii, xi, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 33, 36, 46, 58, 66, 106, 109, 112, 133, 134, 135, 136, 138, 140, 141, 142 Europe, 7, 8, 28, 63, 65, 72, 95, 99, 100, 136 European Union, 99, 100, 103

F fear, 50, 52, 60, 97, 99 films, 96, 97, 98, 99 financial, 16, 34, 48, 54, 58, 62, 65, 68, 69, 74, 78, 90, 92, 94, 110, 125, 127 financial condition, 48, 54, 62 flexibility, 5, 6, 89 food, 91, 98, 100 force, 29, 91, 98, 102 foundations, 19, 31, 87 France, 63, 65, 92, 99, 100 freedom, 6, 50, 53, 83, 85, 88, 102

G global economy, 78, 82, 85, 88, 89, 94 globalization, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, 103, 105, 106, 107, 139 God, xi, 3, 9, 29, 30 governments, 7, 46, 79, 85, 93, 101, 102 growth, 26, 27, 72, 79, 91, 94 guidelines, xi, 22, 30, 41, 132

H hackers, 45, 109, 110, 115, 122, 125, 127, 128, 129, 130, 134, 137 hacking, 18, 78, 111, 124, 125, 127, 128, 129, 130

Index happiness, 55, 56, 57, 103, 106 health, 6, 16, 37, 49, 62, 105 history, 1, 8, 23, 63, 70, 87 honesty, 22, 24, 25, 26, 29 honor, 2, 35 horses, 110, 114, 115 human, 1, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 19, 23, 47, 50, 51, 52, 58, 60, 62, 78, 79, 82, 87, 103, 141 human behavior, 1 human dignity, 50, 52, 58

I ideal(s), 1, 2, 3, 9, 81, 84, 96, 101 identity, 3, 16, 59, 99, 100, 107, 124 image(s), 14, 17, 37, 41, 42, 99, 128 income, 30, 92, 104, 105, 141 individuals, 9, 13, 16, 19, 43, 44, 46, 47, 48, 52, 53, 71, 72, 82, 83, 84, 85, 91, 100, 107, 110, 121 industry/industries, 11, 71, 75, 87, 91, 99 inequality, 85, 133, 136, 142 infection, 117, 118, 119, 120, 121 information technology, 5, 6, 32, 47, 53, 75, 78, 80, 82, 123, 124, 144 institutions, 39, 75, 80, 124 integrity, 2, 29, 35, 37, 109, 111 intellectual property, 36, 53, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 73, 75, 76, 79, 80 Islam, xi, 23, 59, 60, 61, 62, 67, 68, 70, 112 Islamic, xi, 23, 59, 60, 61, 62, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 133, 142, 143 Islamic law, 60, 61, 62, 69 issues, xi, 6, 7, 9, 45, 53, 67, 71, 109

L languages, 34, 35, 40, 41 laws, 2, 8, 22, 23, 36, 63, 64, 65, 66, 75, 79, 111, 123 lead, 16, 26, 50, 92, 118, 130, 135

147 learning, 11, 20, 40 legal responsibility, 2 legislation, 2, 66, 79 light, 1, 22, 45, 69, 82, 86, 88, 105 loyalty, 21, 23, 25 lying, 24, 68, 69

M magazines, 7, 85, 121 magnitude, 44, 78, 96 malware, 109, 110, 111 management, 20, 21, 24, 27, 33, 38, 40, 144 manufacturing, 11, 12, 14, 89 marketing, 33, 72, 89, 90, 91 materials, 35, 65, 70, 71, 73 matter, vi, 9, 27, 53, 56, 69, 70, 106 media, 91, 98, 99, 102, 106, 140, 142 medical, 11, 12, 16, 49, 52, 62 memory, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 122 messages, 12, 18, 89, 90, 115, 127, 129 Microsoft, 40, 44, 71, 80, 81, 89 Middle East, xi, 72, 76, 77 migration, 79, 93, 94 military, 11, 12, 43, 57 motivation, xi, 24, 25, 74 music, 65, 66, 97, 98 Muslims, 30, 60, 113

N network protection programs, 131 North America, 72, 78, 95, 99, 102, 105

O obstacles, 74, 85, 88, 93 openness, 85, 96, 98, 99, 106 operating system, 115, 116, 126

148

Index

operations, 14, 38, 39, 88, 100, 111, 114, 117, 118, 126, 130 opportunities, 71, 78, 86, 95, 100 ownership, 51, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 73, 88

P pain, 54, 55, 56, 57 password(s), 110, 124, 127, 128, 130, 131, 132, 140 peace, xi, 23, 60 penalties, 24, 30, 56, 80 permission, vi, 60, 62, 63, 64, 67, 68, 70, 72 personal computers, 44, 71, 78 piracy, 66, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 140 policy, 7, 24, 85, 86, 111 population, 45, 72, 84, 93, 94, 98, 99, 102, 104, 105 poverty, 82, 85, 92, 94, 95, 99, 104, 105, 106 principles, 1, 6, 8, 19, 20, 23, 35, 37, 58, 108, 124, 125 private information, 48, 54, 58, 62 profession, 2, 3, 19, 20, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 30, 31, 36, 37, 119 professional ethics, 2, 6, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 27, 30 professionals, 7, 31, 32, 35, 79, 123, 131 programming, 31, 32, 34, 35, 40, 41, 111, 115, 122 programming languages, 35, 40, 41, 115 project, ix, 32, 33, 43, 65, 72 property rights, 69, 71, 80 protection, 43, 60, 63, 64, 65, 66, 76, 79, 103, 112, 120, 122, 124, 131 public interest, 21, 23, 37

Q Quran, xi, 23, 59, 60, 67, 70, 140

R radio, 90, 98, 99 reality, 67, 72, 82, 92, 93, 99 regulations, 6, 23, 29, 36 relationships, 1, 23, 32, 33, 47 religion, 1, 24 reproduction, 63, 118, 119 requirement(s), 27, 32, 33, 45, 78, 79 researchers, 63, 82, 86, 97 resources, 32, 39, 88, 90, 102, 114 respect, 3, 9, 22, 23, 26, 35, 36, 52, 58, 100, 106, 111 restrictions, 81, 85, 91, 100, 102 revenue, 80, 90, 137, 138 rights, vi, 50, 54, 63, 65, 66, 67, 68, 70, 73, 79, 80, 107, 126 risk(s), 44, 45, 53, 107, 130, 131 rules, 1, 3, 20, 22, 27, 30, 35, 36, 58, 79

S sabotage, 110, 118, 119, 123, 130 safety, 21, 37, 125 Saudi Arabia, 28, 136, 143, 144 school, 22, 58, 59, 75, 80, 107 science, 4, 8, 38, 40, 140, 144 security, 6, 39, 53, 78, 103, 109, 110, 111, 124, 125, 127, 130, 131, 140, 144 security loopholes, 130 services, vi, 11, 44, 46, 72, 81, 82, 88, 111, 124, 125, 127, 131 Sharia, 60, 68, 69 social life, 1, 17 society, 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 21, 22, 24, 48, 50, 53, 57, 70, 71, 74, 75, 84, 85, 86, 90, 102, 104, 107, 123 software, 6, 10, 15, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 56, 65, 66, 68, 69, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 109, 110,

Index 120, 121, 122, 126, 127, 131, 132, 138, 140 specialists, 39, 43, 123 spyware, 110, 125, 127, 128, 129, 130 stability, 21, 22, 52, 79 state(s), 21, 26, 48, 71, 82, 86, 87, 101, 102, 103, 107, 124, 140 statistics, xi, 27, 28, 45, 46, 71, 72, 75, 78, 80, 137, 139, 140 storage, 121, 128, 129 systems security, 131

149 U UNESCO, 65, 106, 141 United Nations, 65, 92, 104, 106, 107, 135, 141, 142 United States (USA), 7, 8, 16, 28, 45, 46, 64, 65, 66, 82, 87, 90, 92, 95, 96, 98, 100, 101, 103, 107, 136, 142 universities, 7, 11, 21, 72, 75, 80

V T technology/technologies, xi, 5, 6, 11, 13, 17, 32, 41, 45, 47, 53, 62, 75, 78, 80, 82, 86, 102, 103, 104, 109, 122, 123, 124, 136, 138, 141, 143, 144 theft, 16, 46, 69, 70, 72, 109, 123, 124, 125 trade, 68, 71, 75, 76, 85, 90, 99 traditions, 9, 20, 21, 22 training, 20, 32, 33, 79, 109 training programs, 32, 79, 109 transactions, 11, 44, 46, 47 transmission, 81, 101, 102, 118, 124 treatment, 11, 27, 49, 53, 58, 122

viruses, 36, 110, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 119, 120, 121, 122, 127, 129, 130, 132 vision(s), 6, 83, 85, 102, 107

W wealth, 6, 90, 94, 95, 102, 104, 133, 135, 136, 142 websites, 14, 18, 40, 41, 42, 73, 78, 79, 102, 122, 128 workers, 21, 22, 25, 26, 27, 29, 30, 100 workplace, 28, 62, 135 World Bank, 90, 92, 94, 141 worldwide, 71, 72, 78, 90, 105, 137